A Scratch in the Rainbow
by JKDstudent
Summary: Vinyl Scratch has liked Rainbow Dash for a long time, and as more than just a friend. However, her heart is shattered when she finds out that her beloved Dashie is dating Applejack. Rated T just in case. DISCLAIMER: I have no rights to anything affiliated with the My Little Pony franchise. I do not own anything affiliated with the My Little Pony franchise. SEQUEL COMING SOON!
1. Chapter 1

A Vinyl Scratch story

It was a nice summer day in Ponyville, and everypony was enjoying the beauty of the great outdoors. Everypony except for one. The white-coated, blue-maned Vinyl Scratch was sitting alone in her small apartment, depressed about her most recent discovery. The pony she had admired for so long, never able to speak up about her feelings despite the many opportunities, was now dating another pony. She sat at her desk, staring with infinite longing at her favorite photo that she had of her and her crush together. It was during the Canterlot wedding between Shining Armor and Princess Cadence, and Vinyl had her arm around her special somepony and they were both grinning ear-to-ear. She desperately wished that she had revealed her feelings to the pony that day, but it was too late now. She stared at the one pony she had crushed on for so long now and kept repeating the same question to herself over and over.

"Why am I so weak? Why couldn't I just tell Rainbow Dash how I really feel?"

She began crying again, more out of anger at herself and her weakness rather than sadness over her crush being taken. Now she may never be able to tell the cyan-colored Pegasus how she felt. Now her beloved Dashie belonged to that farm pony Applejack, and she could do nothing about it. Vinyl Scratch sat there, shut away from the world, left in peace with her thoughts...and her despair.

*** A few days earlier***

Rainbow Dash soared to her house in Cloudsdale as fast as she could. She was overjoyed about her newfound relationship with Applejack. Her heart felt lighter than her feathers, and the butterflies in her stomach refused to settle. Applejack had kissed her. KISSED her! Rainbow had always had feelings for the orange pony, but she never once thought that they were mutual. But when Rainbow finally worked up the courage to tell Applejack how she felt, she was interrupted by the deepest, most passionate kiss anypony had ever given anypony.

Rainbow climbed into her bed; It was getting late, and she needed her rest for the upcoming week. She fell asleep, quite possibly the happiest pony in all of Equestria that night.

***Present Day***

Rainbow Dash flew as fast as she could to Sugarcube Corner, where her own sugarcube was probably going to scold her for being late. She had told Applejack she would meet her at ten o'clock, but she slept late and she was still on her way as noon was creeping up. Applejack might have already left... Rainbow quickened her pace, flapping her wings with renewed vigor as the thought of disappointing her beloved giving her a sense of extreme urgency.

Finally, she arrived at Sugarcube corner and burst through the doors, breathing hard from her overexertion. Applejack trotted over to her.

"I'm so sorry, AJ! I can't believe I overslept, please don't be mad, I don't know what I would do if-" She was interrupted by Applejack's hoof over her mouth.

"It's alright, sugarcube. Ah know how it is when ya just don't wanna get up with the rooster. Let's just enjoy our date, okay?"

"Thanks, Applejack. I love you." said Rainbow dash, gripping her marefriend in a tight hug.

"Ah love you too, sugarcube."

After Applejack broke the hug, Rainbow couldn't resist; She lunged forward and caught her lover in a deep kiss.

Applejack blushed. "So, we gon' stand here and make out, or we gon' get somethin' ta eat?"

Rainbow smiled devilishly. "I dunno, I'm happy with the first option, myself."

"Yeah, well, ah would be too, but we're standin' her fer everypony to see. Let's just settle fer a bite right now, we can do all the cutesy stuff when we're alone."

Rainbow's ears drooped slightly. "Aww... Fine..."

"Awright," Applejack and Dash took seats by the counter. "Can ah get a Strawberry cupcake and a glass of water?"

"Strawberry?" inquired Rainbow. "I thought apples were your thing."

"They are, but ah still can't eat nothin' but apples all day, every day. Sometimes it's nice to have somethin' different."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I think I'll have a slice of chocolate pie."

After finishing their treats, AJ and Dash left sugarcube corner and headed towards Sweet Apple Acres to spend some time alone in the barn. Along the way they passed by the window of a certain pony's apartment...

***Vinyl***

Vinyl looked up from having her head cupped in her hooves just in time to spot her long-time crush trotting along with her new sweetheart, which did nothing more than set off her emotions even more. She just could not bear knowing that she was too cowardly to tell Rainbow how she felt. Finally she just could not take it anymore. She wiped the tears from her eyes, put on her shades, and opened her apartment door.

"Rainbow Dash! Applejack! Heya!" she called from her doorstep.

"Oh, hey Vinyl. How ya been?" asked Rainbow.

"Hi, Vinyl. It's been awhile since we last seen ya. Whatcha been up to?"

Vinyl blushed, amazed that she had actually worked up the courage to do what she was about to do. "Nothing much, guys. Just been busy. Uhm, Rainbow, do you mind if I talked to you about something? In private?" Vinyl motioned her inside her apartment.

"Well, me and AJ were on our way to spend some quality time alone together..." Dash turned to her lover.

"Go on, sugarcube. We got all day to do whatever we wanna do. A few minutes to talk to Vinyl won't hurt." AJ reassured her.

"Okay, then, be back in a few! Love you, AJ!"

"Ah love you too, sugarcube." replied AJ as Vinyl and Rainbow trotted into the white pony's apartment and the door shut.

"So, what's up, Vinyl?" asked Rainbow. "What do ya need me for?"

"Well, Rainbow," began Vinyl. "I'm about to tell you something that's not very easy for me to tell anypony."

"What is it?"

"Well, we've known each other for a long time. I know we don't hang out as much as we used to, but You're still one of my closest friends, Rainbow. And... I wanted to tell you that I like you, but as more than just a friend. I wish I could have said something sooner, before you and Applejack started dating, but I just can't handle it anymore. I... I love you, Rainbow Dash..."

Rainbow Dash didn't even know where to begin. "Uhm... I'm so sorry, Vinyl, but I'm with Applejack right now. You're one of my best friends, but I can't be with you right now. I'm sorry. I love Applejack, and she loves me back. I wish there was something I could do to make you feel better... I need to go, Applejack is waiting for me outside... I'm sorry, Vinyl, but... we can still be friends, right?"

Vinyl expected something like that, but expecting it didn't lessen the pain of it. "Yeah," she said, tears beginning to well up in her eyes and a crack forming in her voice. "Still friends."

"Okay. I'll... I'll see you around, ok?"

"Okay, Rainbow. See you around."

As Rainbow Dash left and the door shut behind her, Vinyl tore off her shades and threw herself onto her bed, crying furiously. She cried and cried until the tears were no longer able to flow and her breath steadied, and she slowly fell into the abyss of sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt 2

Vinyl Scratch awoke with a jump as her alarm clock blared furiously in her ear. In no mood to deal with the annoyance, Vinyl chucked it at her wall as hard as she could, shattering the clock and silencing its infernal blaring. The previous day had been horrible. She had confessed her love to Rainbow Dash, only to be rejected in no particularly tactful fashion. Then again, tact had never really been one of Dash's strong points, she was too blunt and straightforward. And she made it perfectly clear that she loved Applejack. Tears Began to well up in Vinyl's eyes as her thoughts trailed into the previous day, when Rainbow shattered her heart, and left her alone in her apartment to pick up the pieces... No. Vinyl told herself she was stronger than this. It's not Rainbow's fault because no one can help who they fall in love with, and Vinyl was not going to just sit in her apartment and shut herself away over one pony, even if that pony was the one who broke her heart. She picked herself up and wiped away more tears and decided she was going out to visit some of her other friends.

***Rainbow Dash***

Rainbow Dash awoke around midday next to her darling Applejack. They had both slept in the Sweet Apple Acres barnhouse on an unstacked pile of hay. It itched and irritated Rainbow at first, but she got used to it quickly and settled in with her loverfor some rest. Yesterday's encounter with Vinyl Scratch had left her head buzzing with questions though. "How long was she crushing on me? Why did she wait until I was with another pony to tell me? What's she gonna do now that I've rejected her?" All these and more ran through Rainbow's head as she awoke.

Then she glanced over to her sleeping beloved and decided none of it mattered, as long as she still had her Applejack. She rustled AJ in her sleep.

"Applejack..." she cooed softly. "Wake up, Applejack. Wakey wakey, love."

Applejack slowly opened an eye. "Jus' five more minutes, Rainbow. I was havin' the most wonderful dream about ya."

Rainbow kissed her sleepy marefriend on the lips. "Did it go something like that?"

Applejack pulled her Pegasus back in for another kiss. "Yeah, somethin' like that."

Rainbow giggled. "Come on, let's get our day started. You got chores to do around the farm I could help you with, then we'll have the day to ourselves to do whatever we want."

"Ah know what ah gotta do. Ah just don't wanna do it sometimes."

Rainbow was surprised. Usually Applejack was the responsible one and she was more on the lazy side.

The two loverponies trotted out of the barn, getting ready to get the chores around the farm done so that they could spend the rest of their day in leisure.

***Vinyl Scratch***

Vinyl had cleaned herself up and was on her way to Twilight Sparkle's house to spend some time with her. As if on cue, the door swung open upon her arrival with Twilight standing in the doorway.

"Oh, hello, Vinyl. How are you today?" asked Twilight.

"I'm doing good, Twilight. It's been awhile. Good to see you again."

"It's good to see you, too. I was just about to go into town to do some shopping. Care to join me?"

"Sure thing. I'd love to catch up."

Twilight and Vinyl were in town for awhile. Mostly they just talked about life since the wedding. Twilight hears from her brother even less now that he has a wife to care for as well as his duties in the Royal Guard, but it doesn't really bother her. After Vinyl's DJ performance at the wedding party, she had gotten caught up in various other requests to DJ at various other parties around Equestria. The travel was great for awhile, and the pay was great, but it became too much when she had herself mysteriously booked for parties in Manehattan, Phillydelphia and Canterlot on the same date. After the chaos following that mishap, she backed out of nearly all of the out-of-town parties, having earned enough extra bits to get through the next year. She mostly just got called up for Pinkie Pie's many parties nowadays, but Pinkie always has mysterious bits with which to pay Vinyl for her services.

When they arrived back at Twilight's house, they went their separate ways. Vinyl headed off towards Rarity's shop. She needed a wardrobe update.

Rarity was giving Opal a much-needed bath when she heard her doorbell jingle, signaling the arrival of somepony into her shop. "Be there in just a minute!" she called from the bathroom. She finished rinsing the shampoo out of Opal's fur and quickly dried off the now-miserable cat. After letting the feline loose to crawl uder the bed, as she always did after a bath, Rarity trotted to the front room to see who had entered. "Oh, hello, Vinyl, darling, it's so great to see you again!"

"Yeah, just thought I'd pop in for a visit."

"Oh, how have you been, dearie? You don't visit as often as you used to."

"I've been busy DJ-ing all across Equestria. The wedding party at Canterlot opened a lot of doors for me. I'm still getting requests to come DJ in far-off cities, but I mostly say no unless I really need the money. I had a scheduling mishap that got me to slow my roll a bit."

"Yes, I heard about the whole three parties in one day situation. After something like that, anypony would probably want to take a break."

"I'm not surprised that word of it got to you so quickly. After all, you are quite the gossip, Rarity."

"Well, I never... Oh, who am I kidding, I AM a gossip, aren't I?" Rarity laughed.

"Yeah, but, hey, I was actually coming in to see your latest line of dresses. Anything new?"

"Well..." Rarity thought about it. "Your mane and coat makes for a slightly tricky color scheme to match with, but I think I have just the thing." Rarity trotted to her storage room in the back.

"I actually had this one designed for musical ponies like yourself." Rarity emerged after a few minutes with a jumpsuit-like white dress with red trimming and musical notes decorated across either side.

Vinyl loved it immediately. The skintight design was perfect for the DJ look and the red accentuated her light-and-dark-blue streaked mane.

"Oh, there is one small issue..." Rarity noticed.

"What's that? I don't see an issue" replied Vinyl.

"I haven't had one sized for you. Stand still and let me get your measurements, dearie."

After pulling a tape measure all across Vinyl's body and taking notes, Rarity announced that she would have the suit ready within the next week or so. Vinyl thanked her for her time and went on her way.

***Rainbow Dash***

Rainbow was having the best day ever. After completing the chores on the farm with Applejack, the two went to a nice restaurant and had a good lunch, then went to the bookstore where her dear Applejack was nice enough to buy her the latest novel in the Daring-Do series. Her and AJ were walking around town when they ran into a certain white-and-blue unicorn.

"Oh..." began Rainbow, unsure of what to say. "Hi, Vinyl. How are you today?"

Vinyl could feel the sadness and depression that she had fought so hard to suppress welling back up. "Uhm... I'm doing good, how about you guys?" she managed with a small crack in her voice.

Rainbow sensed the tension in Vinyl's voice and knew she had to end the conversation before a scene was made. "Oh, you know, just hanging out around town. Well, I'll... I'll see ya later ok?"

"Yeah... Sounds good..." squeaked Vinyl, barely able to contain her emotions any longer as Rainbow and Applejack walked off. Vinyl glanced back after a moment and saw the two loverponies kissing. She could not keep it in any longer. She rushed home, locked the door, shut the windows, and once again began to cry uncontrollably.

"Oh, Celestia, I need help!" she cried.


	3. Chapter 3

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt 3

"Yeah... Sounds good..." squeaked Vinyl, barely able to contain her emotions any longer as Rainbow and Applejack walked off. Vinyl glanced back after a moment and saw the two loverponies kissing. She could not keep it in any longer. She rushed home, locked the door, shut the windows, and once again began to cry uncontrollably.

"Oh, Celestia, I need help!" she cried.

***One Year Later***

Vinyl still had not fully gotten over Rainbow Dash. She had dated a couple of other ponies, but none of them made her happy the way Rainbow did. She had grown accustomed to seeing the cyan Pegasus with the orange Earth Pony and no longer had her emotional outbursts the way she used to. She was numb to the feeling of heartache that came with seeing Rainbow, and the two had become close friends again. Applejack was not exactly the jealous type, so she never really had a problem with it when Vinyl and Rainbow would spend time together, and Vinyl was grateful for that. While she could not hold Rainbow as close in her heart as she would like, she still loved spending time with the Pegasus.

Vinyl was sitting at her work desk, thinking deeply of her beloved Rainbow Dash when she heard a knock at her door. "Who is it?" she called.

"Vinyl..." came Rainbow Dash's voice. Her voice was cracking and hollow. "It's me. Can I come in?"

Vinyl was immediately concerned over the tone of voice with which her friend was speaking. "Sure, come on in." she said, opening the door.

On her doorstep, Rainbow was crying furiously, allowing the tears to stream freely down her face. Upon seeing Vinyl Scratch, she rushed in and locked her in a tight hug, short of breath from the vehement crying.

"What's wrong, Rainbow? Why are you crying like this?"

"It's Applejack..."

"What about Applejack? Is she hurt? Sick?" asked Vinyl.

"No, none of that..." replied Rainbow Dash, fighting to keep her voice from cracking. "She... She..." Rainbow could not finish her statement and kept on crying.

"She what?"

"She... Applejack broke up with me!" Rainbow declared.

"What? Why? I thought you two were in love..." said Vinyl.

"I thought we were too, but we were spending time together in the barn earlier, and when I said 'I love you', she got real quiet and I asked what was wrong. She said she had been thinking for awhile and thought it would be best if we stopped dating. I... I've never been so heartbroken in my whole life, not even when my parents left me... I don't know what to do anymore, Vinyl. AJ was my life... I loved her, and she just shattered my heart and left me to pick up the little pieces..." Rainbow Dash buried her face in her friend's mane, with no sign of her tears slowing down.

"Shhh... It's okay, Rainbow. Everything's gonna be fine. You're gonna be alright." Vinyl was trying, but comforting other ponies was not exactly a strong point of hers.

"I know, Vinyl," said Dash, trying to fight her tears. "I know everything will be okay in the end, but... It just hurts so much right now..."

"I know it hurts, Rainbow. I hurt me a lot when you rejected me a year ago, but I got over it. You just gotta move on, Rainbow."

"I'm so sorry I hurt you that day," said Rainbow. "If I had known this would happen... Maybe things would have gone differently that day..."

"It's okay, Rainbow. I've moved on since that day. You just gotta get past what's already been done, because there's no changing that. You gotta think about the future, and start building a new life for yourself, even if that means you have to spend that life without the pony you wanted to spend it with. Because when it all comes down to it, Rainbow, the only pony whose happiness matters is yours. You are a wonderful, amazing pony, Rainbow, and nopony can take away what makes you, you."

Rainbow Dash sniffled. "Thanks Vinyl. That actually made me feel loads better. You're right. I need to let it go. if Applejack is happier without me, then that's on her, and she's still my friend no matter what, but I need to focus on my own happiness and build my future. Thank you so much, Vinyl. I knew I could come to you."

"No problem, Dashie. That's what friends are for." Vinyl realized what she said a moment later.

"Did... Did you just call me 'Dashie'?" Rainbow asked incredulously.

Vinyl was embarrassed. She had been hanging around Pinkie Pie too much and had picked up the Pink pony's pet name for Rainbow Dash. "Yeah... sorry."

"No, don't be sorry. I don't mind," replied Dash. "It's just that I've only ever heard Pinkie call me that, so I was just surprised."

Vinyl laughed. "Well, Dashie, whaddya say we go to Sucarcube corner? My treat!"

Rainbow smiled. "I say heck yeah! Thanks so much, Vinyl!"

"It's nothing. I was gonna go alone later anyways, but I'd rather go with a friend."

Vinyl and rainbow arrived at Sugarcube Corner and ordered some treats. They talked and laughed about life and their other friends. Vinyl's feelings for Rainbow Dash were resurfacing after nearly a year of dormancy. She really did love this Pegasus.

After eating, the two went to Twilight's library, where Rainbow picked up a book about aerial stunts and Vinyl borrowed an instruction booklet on how to fix a busted subwoofer.

Eventually, the two ponies found themselves back at Vinyl's apartment.

"Thanks so much for today, Vinyl. I really needed the picker-upper." said Dash.

"No problem, Rainbow. I'm happy to help." replied Vinyl.

"Hey, I was wondering," began Rainbow, her cheeks turning slightly red. "Would you want to do this again soon? Like, tomorrow, maybe?"

Vinyl's ears drooped. She wanted to spend the day with Rainbow Dash again tomorrow, but a lot of her equipment had gone haywire at once and she scheduled tomorrow to spend the day fixing it. "I'm sorry, Rainbow, I'm booked for tomorrow. I would love to, but I need to fix my sound system."

It was Rainbow's turn to droop her ears. "Oh... That's okay. Some other time, then?"

"Definitely. But, even though I can't see you tomorrow, I can give you something."

"You've already given enough to me today, it's not necessary, Vinyl. Thank you, though."

"No, I insist! Close your eyes and hold out your hoof."

Rainbow felt bad for taking more than she already had from her friend, but when Vinyl wanted something, she was persistent, and besides, the Pegasus was never someone to turn down free stuff, so Rainbow did as she was told. She shut her eyes and held out one hoof. A moment later, Vinyl has taken Rainbow's hoof in her own and leaned in for a deep kiss. It surprised the Pegasus at first, and her instinct told her to leap back, but she stifled that reaction and soon melted into Vinyl's being, embracing her as she did so, becoming completely absorbed into the moment.

They finally broke apart. "Vinyl... I thought you had moved on..." Rainbow said, cheeks turning a deep shade of red.

"I never said I stopped loving you. I just said I moved past the fact that you were with Applejack. But now you're not with her anymore, and I wasn't going to back down from my feelings a second time. I love you, Rainbow Dash."

"I... " Rainbow was unsure of what to say. "I really like you, Vinyl, but I just got out of a relationship a few hours ago. I'm just not sure if I want a relationship with anypony right now..."

Vinyl nodded. She had expected something like that, and had been mentally prepared to handle it. "I understand completely, Rainbow, and I was never expecting you to jump right into a relationship with me. I really just wanted to get you to think about it."

"Well, I was already thinking about. I had been thinking about it since Sugarcube Corner, but the kiss was still... nice."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it." Vinyl started to blush now. "Well, I'm tired, so I think I'm gonna get some sleep now."

"Okay, bye, Vinyl, see you again soon." Rainbow started to take off into the night.

"Goodnight! Sleep well, Dashie!" called Vinyl as the Pegasus flew off.

Vinyl retired to her bed and quickly found sleep, dreaming of her beloved Rainbow Dash.


	4. Chapter 4

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt 4

Rainbow Dash arrived at her house, her thoughts focused on Vinyl Scratch and that wonderful kiss they shared. It was still entirely too soon for her to jump into a relationship. After all, Applejack had just broken up with her a few hours ago. She needed some time to get her head back on straight before she started dating again. She liked Vinyl, and she knew Vinyl like her back, but Rainbow was a smarter pony than that. She knew better than to let her feelings, no matter how great, cloud her better judgment, and she knew she could not have a relationship with Vinyl. At least, not yet...

***Vinyl Scratch***

Vinyl woke up the next morning happier than she had been in almost a year. With Rainbow Dash and Applejack split up, this was her big chance to win the Pegasus's heart. This was her chance to be with the pony she had loved for so long, and she was not going to allow it to slip away from her a second time. Unfortunately, she was going to be busy fixing up her sound systems today and would be unable to see her beloved Rainbow.

Just as the white Unicorn was allowing her thoughts to trail off in the direction of her dearly beloved Pegasus, there was a knock at her door. "Who is it?" she called.

"It's Rainbow. I know you said you were busy today, but I at least wanted to come by and offer some help fixing your equipment."

Vinyl blushed. It was so considerate of her to come over and offer her help. "Uh, sure, come on in."

Rainbow opened the door and trotted in. "Hey, Vinyl. I'm here for whatever you need me to do. I'm not really techno-savvy the way you are, but I'll help out however I can."

"Thanks, Rainbow." Vinyl blushed deeper red. The Pegasus normally tried to act tough, and she was indeed one tough pony, but Vinyl saw past the tough exterior and knew that, inside, Rainbow Dash had a big heart and an undying devotion to her friends.

The two ponies spent the day rummaging through tools, moving large tables and speakers, mending and replacing snapped wires, and testing the repaired systems to make sure they worked properly again. After a long day of work, all of the equipment was eventually restored to proper working condition. The tired workers talked and joked and laughed throughout the day, and were relieved when their work was finished.

"Thanks so much, Rainbow. You were a great help." said Vinyl.

"It was no sweat, although the smell of my mane might say otherwise." joked Dash.

"Tell you what. You worked hard trying to help me today, you deserve a little something in return." replied Vinyl. "My bathroom's down the hall on the left, we can shower off and go out wherever you want to for dinner, Dashie."

Rainbow looked over at Vinyl with her eyes the size of dinner plates. "Can we go to the Mane Event on Stirrup Street? I haven't been there in forever!"

"Wherever you want, Rainbow. It's on me." Vinyl smiled. "But first, you have to get yourself cleaned up. And so do I."

After they showered off, Rainbow and Vinyl went off to the Mane Event to eat. It was an all-you-can-eat buffet, so they both went crazy with the food, eating until they were about to be sick.

After dinner, Rainbow Dash thanked Vinyl for the meal and tried to take off, but nearly puked as she picked up speed. She landed back on the ground in front of Vinyl, blushing slightly.

"Guess my stomach is telling me not to fly for awhile. I knew I shouldn't have had that last plate of hay fries." Rainbow groaned. "Guess I'm not going home tonight."

"How about you stay at my place for the night?" Vinyl offered.

"You sure? I don't think your couch is big enough for me to really stretch out."

"I wasn't talking about you sleeping on the couch, silly. I have a king-size bed, I'm sure there's room for both of us."

"You sure?" repeated Rainbow. "I don't want to impose."

"It's no trouble, really. Besides, when you live alone, sometimes it's nice to have a friend stay the night to keep you company."

"Yeah, I guess it is. Okay, I'll crash with you tonight!"

"Good to hear. Come on, it's getting late." They trotted back to Vinyl's apartment.

At Vinyl's apartment, Rainbow and Vinyl were sitting on the couch in the living room. Neither pony was really tired, so they stayed up and talked. Eventually, Rainbow's previous relationship with Applejack came to be the subject.

"I mean, I'm not upset about it anymore, but I just wish she had given me a reason for ending it so suddenly, you know?"

"I know, Dashie. I thought it was weird, too." replied Vinyl.

"What kinda pony does that kinda thing, anyways? I mean, I put all of my love and faith into her and she just..." Rainbow paused, emotions starting to well up in her. "She just... She just... Dear Celestia, I AM still upset!" she declared as the tears began to flow again. She buried her face back into Vinyl's mane and cried.

"There, there, Dashie. I'm right here for you."

"Th- thank you so much, Vinyl. I hate for anypony to see me like this. I'm so glad I have a friend like you."

"And I'm glad to have a friend like you, Rainbow."

Rainbow Dash brought her head up, looking Vinyl in the eyes. Then she did the last thing Vinyl would ever have expected her to do. She leaned forward and kissed Vinyl right on the lips. Vinyl did not resist. The moment she had dreamed of was finally coming true. She accepted Rainbow Dash's lips upon hers, embracing her beloved Pegasus and allowing herself to be completely absorbed in the happiest moment of her life.

The two ponies broke apart, both of their faces beet red. "So..." began Vinyl. "What do you wanna do now, _friend_?"

Rainbow smiled deviously. "Well, I'm satisfied to keep doing what we were doing, _friend_."

The two laughed at the not-so-subtle joke, then kissed again.

Eventually, the newfound lovers made their way into Vinyl's bedroom and cuddled up together to sleep the night away.


	5. Chapter 5

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt. 5

Rainbow Dash was practicing her more advanced flying stunts, more now than ever wanting to be able to execute them perfectly. She wanted desperately to impress the Wonderbolts and convince them to let her join them. She also wanted something to show off to her new marefriend, Vinyl. It had been three months since Rainbow had spent that magical night at Vinyl's apartment, and the two had been almost inseparable since then. The only reason the Pegasus was not spending time with her beloved Unicorn at that moment was because Vinyl had gotten booked at a party in Phillydelphia. She had been there to see Vinyl off at the train station earlier, and decided that she might as well take the time to herself to get some practice in. She was also meeting up with her friends at the Day Spa later on, so it would be nice to relax right after a hard day's practice.

Rainbow Dash could feel the wind through her mane, the adrenaline coursing through her body. This was what she lived for. Nothing in all of Equestria made the cyan Pegasus feel more content than the experience of soaring through the air at the highest speed possible.

***Vinyl Scratch***

"IS EVERYPONY READY TO PARTY?" yelled Vinyl across the warehouse where she was dropping her world-famous beats for the crowd of party going ponies.

The response was phenominal. "D-D-D-DROP THE BASS!" the crowd roared.

Vinyl obliged, tuning her speakers to a gut-wrenchingly low pitch and adjusting the subwoofers to handle the frequency. She flipped the switch and the bass dropped. Her bass system was causing the entirety of the warehouse to vibrate. This was what she lived for. The roar of the crowd as she rocked her beats and dropped her perfectly tuned, earth shaking bass. She was the famous DJ-Pon3, after all. The top partiers paid top-dollar just for her to make an appearance at one of their parties, let alone break out her sound system and DJ for them. She enjoyed a lot of things, but, above all, Vinyl Scratch loved to party. The music, the crowd, the energy. She was high on life when she could party, and she usually partied with the best of them.

Vinyl trotted along the streets of Phillydelphia. The party had ended, and she was supposed to arrive at the train station to catch the first train of the new day that the party had lasted long into. It was only five o' clock in the morning, and the train was not scheduled to leave until six, but Vinyl wanted to be sure she would beat the crowd. Last time she had to catch an early-morning train, she had ended up missing it due to the hoards of people at the station that arrived before her. What a nightmare that had been! She hated spending more than a few days at a time in Phillydelphia, and an extended stay was most certainly not something she was looking forward to enduring.

Vinyl arrived at the train station and looked at her ticket. The six o' clock to Ponyville, making a stop in Los Manegeles along the way. She turned her ticket in to one of the ponies at the counter, who whole-punched it once and gave it back. Vinyl, having gotten her ticket properly marked, boarded the train. She took her seat at the window overlooking the counter and saw a few other ponies get their tickets marked, most notably a stallion with a brown coat and gray mane with a cutie mark of the male and female gender symbols intersecting. Vinyl wondered what kind of talent a mark like that could possibly represent.

After the dreaded crowd arrived at the station and the train was seemingly filled beyond capacity, the engine started and tthe train lurched into motion. The station slowly but surely passed by, and Vinyl closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep, not to reawaken until the stop in Los Manegeles.

_Vinyl Scratch and her marefriend, Rainbow Dash sat at the park, enjoying a nice, relaxing picnic together. Rainbow Dash was munching on a Dandelion sandwich while Vinyl was eating a plate of baked grain. The two lovers finished their food, then lay down on the blanket and stared up at the sky, admiring its colors during the sunset. Rainbow leaned over and gave Vinyl a peck on the cheek, and she returned the notion by flipping over onto her stomach and deeply kissing Rainbow on the lips. The two broke apart after a few seconds, and both of them were content._

_"Rainbow Dash?" began Vinyl._

_"Yeah? What is it, Vinyl?" asked Dash._

_"I love you."_

_"I love you, too." The couple exchanged another kiss, this one deeper and more passionate than the last._

"Attention, passengers. We have arrived at Los Manegeles. Please feel free to enjoy the sights, but remember to be back on the train by the time it's scheduled to depart at four o' clock this afternoon. Thank you."

Vinyl awoke from her dream, upset that it had to be interrupted by the intercom. Everypony was already disembarking from the train, so she decided to stay in her seat and wait out the crowd. After the bulk of the ponies has gotten off of the train, she left her seat and followed suit.

Los Manegeles was a grand city. It was much like Phillydelphia, except the air was much cleaner and easier to breathe. That and the hotels were actually of decent quality, unlike the filthy, run-down places running over in Philly. Overall, Los Manegeles was simply a cleaner city that held itself to a higher standard. The only downside to the living quality of the city was that it also gave them an excuse to raise the price of living in it, but the cost of living does not apply if a pony does not actually live there. And Vinyl was very grateful she did not live in Los Manegeles. It was a great place, but far too expensive for her income.

Vinyl checked the clock at the station. It was slightly past noon, which gave her almost four hours to enjoy the sights before she needed to come back, and just over three hours if she expected to beat the crowd on top of that.

She spent her free time walking the streets of Los Manegeles, mostly just enjoying the clean air and the smell of the various restaurants' food as she trotted by. She enjoyed sightseeing, but something seemed odd. She felt that she was being watched by somepony. She shrugged it off. Judging by all these normal-looking ponies walking around, her punk-rock appearance was probably attracting some stares from behind sunglasses and newspapers.

Before she knew it, three o'clock had rolled around, so she started to head back towards the train station. In her rush, she ran down a wrong alleyway thinking it was one of her shortcuts. When she exited the alley, she found herself in a very unfamiliar part of the city.

"Whoops," she said. "Guess I had better turn back." She turned and started to head back through the alley, only to be cut off halfway through by a strange pony in a black jumpsuit and mask.

"Who are you?" she asked, rearing her hind hooves in case she needed to strike.

"My name is not important. What's important is that you're coming with me." replied the masked pony.

"Is that what you think?" relied Vinyl. "Sorry to disappoint you, then, but I have a train to catch."

"I'm afraid you have no choice in the matter."

Vinyl had about had enough of this pony. She was about to rear up and kick him square in the jaw when she heard a dull thump and felt pain welling up in the back of her head. The last thing she saw before unconsciousness claimed her was the masked pony standing over her as she fell to the ground.


	6. Chapter 6

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt. 6

"Is she ever gonna wake up?" came one voice, masculine.

"Not if you don't get a little patience! Ever heard of a watched pot never boils?" came another, feminine.

Vinyl Scratch woke, but dared not open her eyes or give any indication that she had woke. She was a very levelheaded pony, and she knew that if she let them know she was awake, they would probably not be willing to talk as freely in front of their prisoner. She felt a small device on her horn, probably enchanted to shut off her magic, and shackles around each of her hooves. She was probably chained to the floor or the walls, but she could tell by the lack of tug on the shackles that she probably had at least a small amount of freedom to move about. She was also aware of a slight tingling sensation in the back of her head, probably from where she had been hit.

"Well, the boss ain't gonna wait forever. Eventually he'll stop caring about her well-being and just wake her up by force." said the male pony.

"That's none of our concern," replied the mare. "What the boss does to her is his thing, but we were told to let her wake up on her own to prevent any unwanted struggling. You know as well as I do that someone who wakes up of their own accord is less likely to flip out."

"I know, but it's just so boring. We've been stuck in this room for sixteen hours with nothing to do but watch and wait on her to come to."

"I'm bored, too, but this is what we were paid to do. Just keep the thought of a hundred thousand bits in mind, and you might be able to sit still a little better."

A hundred thousand bits! That was several times more money than Vinyl had earned in her whole life! And someone is willing to pay that much just for her capture? Some really rich pony really did not like her. But she could not think of anypony she had ever made an enemy out of with that kind of money at their disposal. Even after learning something so shocking, she did not stir. The longer she kept still and faked unconsciousness, the longer her captors would be able to talk freely.

"Dear mother of Celestia, why won't she just wake up?" groaned the stallion, growing ever more impatient. "I'm about to just wake her up myself, to hay with his orders!"

"You will do no such thing, you insolent fool!" commanded the mare. Obviously she was the one in charge out of the two. "If you even TOUCH her, I'll let her go free and lock YOU up in her place! I will not have you ruin such a huge paycheck because you can't sit still!"

"Fine. But I don't get it. She seems like any old ordinary pony. Why would the boss be willing to pay so much for one little pony?"

"That's none of our business. In our line of work, the less we know, the better. It's best that we know as little personal information about our targets as possible. To us, the targets need to be just that. Targets. Nothing more than the unfortunate souls who happened to get on the bad side of our employers."

"I know, but you know how it is. Sometimes you just can't help but get a little curious, as many oddball cases as we get." The stallion was getting more antsy by the minute.

"Yeah, I'll admit, there have been a few cases that made me wonder what was so special about the target ponies to our employers. But it's not my place to know, and I know that. And so should you."

Vinyl almost smirked, but remembered she needed to be completely still in order to pass herself off as a knocked-out pony. The stallion was very curious, and she was already formulating a plan to take advantage of his thirst for knowledge. The mare, however, would be a challenge. She was suddenly extremely grateful to have been in her line of work. As many parties as she had been to, she had met plenty of ponies, more than a few of which were quite quirky. A few of those quirky ones had also been psychotic, and she had learned very quickly how to turn their various quirks and weaknesses against them in order to get herself out of a tight spot.

To make her image slightly more convincing, she let out some built-up drool from the corner of her open mouth.

Even when her target was out cold, the mare was quite a bit less open about herself than Vinyl would have liked. But if she could maintain her unconscious facade, maybe the mare would let down her guard and reveal something that Vinyl could use against her. She just needed to be more patient than her captor. And from the sound of it, the mare excelled at patience.

"Look, Silverwind," began the stallion. "I know it's not my place, and I don't plan on finding out anything personal about her, but I'm just saying that sometimes, it would be kinda nice to know exactly what we're getting caught in the middle of before we just up and take the job."

Silverwind! So that was the mare's name! Even that little bit of information was valuable to Vinyl. Now, if Silverwind's idiot partner would get into some juicier stuff, she could use the information to psych out the mare. Vinyl was silently praying that the stallion would keep talking. Her whole escape plan depended on one of the ponies talking about their personal lives.

"Oh, for Celestia's sake, Firehooves! Shut up!" commanded Silverwind, again establishing her authority over the stallion.

Silverwind and Firehooves. Not exactly the juicy personal information Vinyl was hoping for, but it was enough to escape. She would not implement it right then, though. She needed to be patient and wait until one of the ponies was alone.

***Rainbow Dash***

Rainbow Dash was walking towards Sweet Apple Acres. She had to talk to a certain orange pony about something that had been on her mind.

As she reached the summit of the rolling hill overlooking the farm, her ears perked up at the sound of crunching leaves. She was being watched. She pretended not to notice and kept walking as if nothing had raised her suspicion.

As the entrance to Sweet Apple Acres crept closer, Rainbow could hear the soft rustling of the grass underneath her stalker's hooves behind the brush to the right. Whoever was following her must have been a real amateur to be so close and expect to go undetected. The unknown pony seemed to have no intention of confronting her at that time, so she decided it would be best to just play along with it... for the moment.

She entered the main gate into Sweet Apple acres, making her way towards the house. She knocked on the door and stepped back. This would be the first time she had seen Applejack since the breakup, and there was only one question on the Pegasus's mind. "Why?"

Big Macintosh answered the door. "Ayyyyeeeeup?"

"Hey, Big Mac, is AJ here?"

"Ayyyyeeeup. She's in the fields buckin' apples."

"Thanks, Big Mac."

"Ayyyyeeeup."

Rainbow tore off into the orchard, listening for the sound of hooves on bark as well as the pony stalking her. Eventually she located her ex-marefriend. "Hey, Applejack..." The awkwardness of the situation was setting in immediately.

"Oh... Hey, Rainbow..." replied Applejack.

"Uhm, can we talk?"

Applejack already knew what this was about, but decided to let Rainbow make her statement anyways. "Sure, Rainbow. Whatcha need?

"Well, I know that you and me are over, but... I just... I just..."

"Ya wanna know why?" guessed Applejack.

"More than anything, I want to know why. You broke my heart, AJ, and I don't want this to keep us from being friends. I just need to know."

"Rainbow, Ah know Ah hurt you, but ya gotta understand, I jus' didn't think we were gonna work. We were growin' apart, and gettin' into more and more arguments, and Ah jus' didn't wanna see our friendship ruined over some stupid argument we woulda ended up havin'. We can still be friends, though, right, Dash?"

Rainbow nodded. She knew AJ was right, although she did not want to admit it. "Okay, AJ, that's all I needed. Thanks for telling me."

"No problem, Dash. Still friends?"

"Friends. Forever, AJ."

"Alrighty, then."

Rainbow Dash remembered her stalker pony. She didn't want AJ getting caught in the middle of that. "Well, I gotta jet. I'll see you around, AJ."

"Alright, Dash. See ya 'round."

Rainbow Dash left Sweet Apple Acres, still completely aware of the mystery pony in the brush. The pony must not have moved, he or she must have at least had better sense than to go through the farm, as it would practically be begging to be seen.

She trotted off down the same path she used to get to the farm, knowing full well that the pony was right behind her, trying to be as sneaky as possible, and very much failing.

Once she arrived at what she estimated to be the halfway point between the farm and the town, she bolted left, sticking out her front hooves and slamming her follower right in the face.

"Okay, I know you've been following me at least since Sweet Apple Acres, who are you and what do you want?" demanded Dash from her stunned stalker.

The discombobulated pony looked up at Rainbow Dash. None of his body was visible behind his Camo jumpsuit and mask. "I'm here to take you to Vinyl."

Rainbow's anger flared to new heights when her beloved Unicorn's name was mentioned. "WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT VINYL? AND WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'TAKE ME TO HER'? WHERE IS SHE? SHE HAD BETTER BE SAFE, OR I'M GONNA KICK YOUR FLANK SO HARD, YOU'LL-"

Rainbow Dash never finished her threat. She was struck in the back of the head and was knocked out immediately.

Rainbow's assailant looked down at her, the knot on her head beginning to swell.

"Nicely done." the stallion said after spitting the 2x4 from his mouth.

"It was an easy diversion," replied his partner. "Make myself noticed on purpose so that she won't notice you."

"Indeed. Works every time."

The two shared a laugh as the assailant lifted Dash onto his back. "Come on, Greyson promised us a hundred thousand bits for this one."

The two ponynappers trotted off into the woods to prepare Rainbow Dash for transport to the cabin deep in the Everfree forest.


	7. Chapter 7

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt. 7

Rainbow awoke with her legs shackled to the floor and her wings clamped to her body. She would have struggled, but she knew it was in vain. She would just be wasting effort resisting iron shackles.

"Rainbow? Is that you?" came a familiar voice from beside her. Rainbow looked over to see the source of the voice.

"VINYL!" exclaimed Rainbow. "Oh my gosh, are you alright, baby? They haven't hurt you, have they?"

"Aside from the whack to the head it took to get me here, I'm fine." replied Vinyl, relieved that her beloved Pegasus seemed to be alright. "But, listen, I faked sleep, and the people who were watching me blabbed some pretty sweet information. I think I can use it to get us out of here. I'm waiting for one of them to pop in alone so I can mess with their head without the other catching on."

"Whatever you can do to get us out of here, do it, Vinyl. I trust your judgment."

"Thanks, Rainbow. I can't guarantee my plan will work, but I can try."

As if on cue, the cabin door opened and Firehooves trotted in carrying two plates of food, one on his back and the other in his teeth. He dropped one plate in front of Vinyl, and the other in front of Rainbow.

"So, you finally came to, miss Unicorn? It's about time. Here's lunch. Enjoy your time together, because our boss plans on making it your last time together." Firehooves turned around to leave the cabin.

"Wait, before you go, can I ask you something?" asked Vinyl, putting on her best innocent face, which would have even convinced Rainbow Dash if she had not already known Vinyl.

The stallion turned to face Vinyl. "What is it?"

"Doesn't it bother you sometimes, not knowing what you agreed to? What kind of pony you agreed to hurt?"

Firehooves was slightly taken aback. "Yeah, sometimes I wonder what i get myself into with these jobs, but then my paycheck comes, and that's all I need to set my mind at ease. The ends justify the means."

"But you can't know that for sure. You don't know what kind of pony whose life you're deliberately ruining for that paycheck. You don't know what they've been through, or even why whoever hired you wanted them to suffer through this. Doesn't it make you feel a little guilty sometimes?"

"Well...yeah, it does..." Firehooves hung his head, feeling slightly ashamed to be in this line of work.

"Look, I have a plan. I know how you can let us go and get your pay at the same time. But I need you to trust me. Can you do that?"

"I... I don't know. What's the plan?"

"I won't tell you unless you let me out of these shackles."

"No! I can't do that. What if I let you go and you just bolt?"

"You seem like a strong enough pony that I couldn't get past you anyways."

"What about your magic? You could beat me with your horn."

"I don't see how. While you and your partner were gone, I tried to get this device off of my horn. If I could get it off, it would be off. There's enough slack on these chains that I tried to pry it off with my hooves. Couldn't even budge it. You can keep the device on my horn, but just let me out of these shackles. You need to trust me."

Something about the Unicorn's tone of voice made Firehooves want to trust her, to believe that she would be true to her word. His better judgment was still in control, though, and he was still not convinced he should let her free.

Vinyl could see that the stallion's mind was in turmoil. He was riddled with guilt at his actions, and he was ashamed of the wrongs he had committed. And her words weren't entirely true. While she really had not been able to remove the device from her horn, she was able to loosen it enough for it to allow very small amounts of magic to flow. Just enough to enchant her voice and give it slightly hypnotic qualities. She kept on going; Her spell was starting to really mess with his head.

"Just let me go, Firehooves. I can help you." she cooed, her voice becoming ever more soothing to his ears. His better judgment was fighting hard, though. He still was not about to let her go.

Vinyl frowned. Her spell was still not having the right effect. She pushed harder, trying to squeeze out as much magic as the loosened device would allow from her horn. She pushed harder than she meant to, though, and her magic depleted. Her spell dissipated, and Firehooves quickly regained his bearings.

"Oh, nice try, you sly little missy! Thought you could use your smooth words to get yourself out of the jam you're in. Well, you're not that slick. Takes a lot more than an innocent face and some sweet words to break me! I have something special for ponies like you!" He turned and exited the cabin, only to re-enter shortly afterwards carrying a muzzle.

After a few minutes of working against Vinyl's flailing limbs, the muzzle was secured over her mouth, rendering her unable to speak coherently. "There. That ought to keep you from trying any more of your tricks. See you at dinner." Firehooves left the cabin, shutting and locking the door behind him.

Vinyl was dumbstruck. She was so close to being set free, but she pushed her already limited magic too far. Stupid device! If only somepony could help her get it off! That's when she remembered. She wasn't the only pony in the cabin anymore.

She trotted over to Rainbow Dash, shackles clinking along as she went. She pointed towards her horn and made motions resembling the smashing of one's hoof onto the floor.

Rainbow got the message. "Yeah, ok, I can do that." The captive Pegasus stood up and planted a kiss on her captive marefriend's cheek.

Vinyl laid down and propped her horn up on her hoof, bracing herself for Rainbow's hoof to come down on her horn. Rainbow swung with all her might, bringing her hoof down with as much force as she could muster. When contact was made, there was an explosion of magical energy. The device blocking Vinyl's magic shattered, and Rainbow was knocked against the wall by the blast. Vinyl had her power back, and was already busy breaking herself out of her shackles and muzzle. When she was completely free, she broke all of Rainbow's bonds as well.

"Come on, Rainbow, let's-" Vinyl was interrupted by a long, deep kiss from her beloved Rainbow Dash.

"I was so worried about you, Vinyl." said Rainbow after the kiss ended. "You never showed up at the train station, and I didn't know what to do after that. I was so scared that something bad had happened to you."

"I'm fine now, thanks to you, Rainbow." said Vinyl. "But come on, we gotta get outta here."

Rainbow nodded, and they exited the cabin and gallopped through the Everfree Forest. Rainbow led the way, she knew exactly where to go.


	8. Chapter 8

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt. 8

Applejack looked all over town, but was unable to locate anyof her friends, and began to worry that maybe they had been captured like Rainbow Dash, but then she remembered: She was supposed to meet up with the rest of them at Zecora's place after she finished her chores, so that's probably where they were. The farm pony tore off towards the forest, eager to get to her friends and get help.

***Rainbow & Vinyl***

Rainbow Dash and her beloved Unicorn tore off from the cabin, Rainbow leading the way. She knew that it would not be safe for either of them to go back to Ponyville, so she lead Vinyl towards the one place where they would be relatively safe: Zecora's house.

"Rainbow, where are we going?" asked Vinyl as they ran.

"We can't go back to Ponyville. They would expect that, and it would put the rest of our friends in danger. We're going to Zecora's to see if we can stay with her until we figure out who hired those two and what they want with us."

They arrived at Zecora's after a few minutes of running through the forest. Rainbow knocked on the door. "Zecora, we need your help! It's urgent!"

The eccentric zebra answered the door. "Rainbow Dash, what is so wrong? Your friends have been waiting on you all day long." Zecora stepped out from in front of the doorway to reveal Twilight, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie sitting at the table.

"Rainbow, what's so urgent?" asked Twilight.

"Okay, guys, here's the deal, me and Vinyl were-"

"Hey, y'all, sorry Ah'm late," Applejack said, just now arriving and out of breath. "But somethin' terrible's... Rainbow? Vinyl? What in the hay are y'all doin' here?"

"Applejack, we invited Rainbow, remember, silly?" said Pinkie.

"Ah know we invited her, but lemme explain." Applejack began to try and explain, but Rainbow was determined to relate the experience herself.

"Applejack, how about I tell them what's going on? I'm the one it happened to, after all, not to mention Vinyl."

"Fair 'nough. Tell 'em, Rainbow."

"Okay. It started like this..." Rainbow Dash spent the next several minutes explaining what had been happening to her and Vinyl to the rest of her friends. "So," concluded Rainbow, "It's not safe for me or Vinyl to go back to Ponyville right now, so I was wondering if me and her could stay here until we can figure out what's going on."

"Well, this is quite the adventure you have had," replied Zecora. "Of course you can stay until the culprits are unmasked."

"And I'm going to conduct my own investigation on this matter," said Twilight. "Anypony who wants to help me can. I'm probably going to try and get a list of the wealthiest ponies in Equestria. That might give us a few leads as to who would be able to afford to spend such an exorbitant amount of money."

"Good thinking, Twilight." said Fluttershy. "I'm going to talk to the woodland creatures, see if they have noticed anything suspicious lately."

"I have some friends at the banks with access to their customer's financial records," said Rarity. "I'm going to see if I can... _persuade _them to give me the records of the ponies on Twilight's list."

"This is all well and good, but there's one problem with all of this." said Vinyl. "Me and Rainbow just escaped. They're going to be back at the cabin in a few hours to bring me and Rainbow dinner. When they see that we made a prison break, they're going to be on the lookout for anything suggesting someone knows where we are. We need to go about this in a way that won't attract the wrong kind of attention. And ponies going around town gathering information on really rich ponies as well as getting their financial records is bound to raise an eyebrow."

"Vinyl's right," admitted Twilight. "We need to go about this really carefully. We need to think of something... I got it! Vinyl, you said that since you and Rainbow have escaped, they're gonna have their guard up. But what if they never find out you escaped? They would have no reason to be suspicious because they think everything is going smoothly."

"Yes, this is true," remarked Rarity. "But how do you suppose we make them believe they still have Rainbow and Vinyl when they're standing right here?"

"I already have it figured out. I've been practicing a new spell that lets me create false images of anypony I choose, and I can even control them to make them say and do as I wish. It will be a long shot making two, but as long as nopony tries to actually touch them, they should make whoever is behind this think they still have Rainbow and Vinyl captive."

"Well," said Applejack. "If yer gonna be busy keepin' them fooled, Ah'll work up the list of rich ponies."

"Then it's settled. Rainbow and Vinyl will stay in my hut," concluded Zecora. "And you all will drive the other ponies nuts."

"What are you gonna do, Pinkie?" asked Twilight.

"Well, that's obvious, Twilight!" exclaimed Pinkie. "I'm going to help you out! I had a great idea to help you help Rainbow and Vinyl. I figured since you said that it would strain your magic to make two fake ponies, then I would just dress up and play the part of one of them and take a load off your horn and decrease the risk of something going wrong!"

"Pinkie, that involves you being shackled to the floor and being held captive," said Rainbow. "Are you sure you wanna do that, Pinkie?"

"Yes, I'm absolutely, positively, astronomically, one-hundred-and-three percent sure! I would do anything to help my friends!"

"Wow, Pinkie, that's very noble of you to put yourself through something like that for the good of your friends." said Fluttershy.

"No problem at all! Now, I need to look like Vinyl since I have too much of a mane to pull off Rainbow. That and a teensy-weensy horn is easier to make than a big pair of wings."

"I will be back in a little bit," said Zecora. "The ingredients to disguise Pinkie are short-stocked for my mix."

"Zecora, if it's not too much trouble," asked Twilight. "If it's not too much trouble, get enough ingredients for two transformations. I figure just disguising myself as one of them has less chance of failing than making an illusion of them."

Zecora departed, and the ponies sat in silence as they waited for the potion mistress to return with her potion ingredients.

After about a half hour, Zecora returned will her saddlebag full. "I am pleased to declare that very well my search did fare."

The zebra trotted over to her cauldron and began mixing. When she was done, she dipped two cups into the brew and handed one to Vinyl and one to Rainbow. "A hair of your mane is now needed to make the potion do as heeded."

Vinyl and Rainbow obliged, biting a hair off of each other's manes and dropping it into the potion, where the hairs dissolved immediately. Zecora took the potions and handed them to Twilight and Pinkie. "Now drink." she said.

Twilight and Pinkie gulped down the liquid in their cups, and immediately, Pinkie's mane was straightening out and turning from pink to rainbow, and Twilight's mane was beginning to grow out and turn light and dark blue.

When the transformation was complete, there was no way to tell the difference. Even their voices were the same. The only difference was that Pinkie's wings did not work.

Vinyl was impressed, but they were also pressed for time. "You guys need to go, now. They will be at the cabin any minute. Oh... also, before I forget, Twilight, you need to make this." Vinyl used her magic to conjure an image of the device Firehooves and Silverwind used to block her magic. "Oh, no problem at all." Twilight gathered some materials up, molded them into the likeness of the device, and stuck it on her horn.

"Now, remember, guys," instructed Rainbow. "It's not enough to just look like us. You have to ACT like us, too. Twilight, you got it easy in that department, they put a muzzle on poor Vinyl. But Pinkie, you NEED to remember that you can't act like yourself. Got it?"

"Don't you worry about a thing, Rainbow. I got it under control."

"Alright, then." said Vinyl. "You guys need to go and get back to the cabin. I'll lead you there."

Fluttershy got up to leave. "I'm gonna go ahead and get going, see if I can get some information from the animals."

"Alright, Fluttershy. Thanks so much for helping out." said Rainbow.

Rarity followed suit. "Let me know when you get some info, Applejack."

"Will do, missy." Applejack left as well.

"Well" said Vinyl. "I'm gonna go ahead and lead Twilight and Pinkie to the cabin. I'll be back shortly."

"Okay," said Rainbow. Be careful... All of you." She leaned in and gave Vinyl a quick kiss on the lips.

"Be right back." Vinyl and the others took off towards the cabin.

Rainbow Dash was barely able to contain her emotions. She could not possibly ask for better friends. Nor did she particularly want to.

After Vinyl returned, Rainbow ran over and kissed her again, this time much more passionately and lovingly.

"Everything's gonna be ok." Vinyl reassured Rainbow after they broke the kiss.

Rainbow chuckled. "Well, one thing's for sure. These ponies have no idea what they just got themselves into."

"That's for sure!" agreed Vinyl.

"Well, now, ponies, come with me." interjected Zecora. "I will show you where you can sleep."

After being directed to the spare bedroom Zecora had, Rainbow and Vinyl laid down on the bed, ready to let sleep claim them after their long, taxing day.

"Vinyl?" inquired Dash.

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

Vinyl leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. "I love you too."


	9. Chapter 9

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt. 9

Applejack would have stayed in Ponyville to get the answers she wanted, but it was more than likely that nopony in the small town would be able to give her adequate answers, so she boarded the next train to Canterlot. If anypony could give her the answers she needed, it would be the stuck-up snobs in Equestria's capitol city. Applejack thought of Rarity and how much she would love to be going off to Canterlot. The orange pony allowed herself a chuckle at the thought of Rarity's reaction when she found out that Applejack went without her.

***Rarity***

Rarity continued working on her dress designs. Until Applejack handed her the list of rich ponies, there was no point in her going through anypony's records. The beauty queen kept going through daily life as normal. As far as anypony outside herself and her friends were concerned, she was certainly not about to be involved in a complex investigation involving stealing financial records out from under the banker's noses, and was certainly not about to get herself potentially involved in Equestria's criminal underworld. No, she was far to sophisticated and good-natured of a pony to get herself involved in that sort of thing.

***Fluttershy***

Fluttershy was flittering through the woods next to her cottage, using her singing voice to call upon all the little woodland animals that she looked after. When a satisfactory number of critters were sitting at her feet, she leaned down to speak to them. "Okay, little guys," began the yellow Pegasus. "I need to know if any of you have seen anypony acting suspicious. My friends Rainbow Dash and Vinyl Scratch were ponynapped by bad ponies recently, and I need you all to tell me what you've seen, and I would also very, very much appreciate it if you would keep an eye out in Ponyville for anything suspicious, okay?"

All the animals nodded in understanding.

"Oh, and also, pass the message along to anyone who isn't here with us right now. I need everyone's cooperation on this."

The critters nodded again, then one of the birds, a blue jay, glided down from a nearby tree branch and perched itself on Fluttershy's shoulder.

"Oh? What is it, little guy?" asked to timid Pegasus.

The jay leaned in to Fluttershy's ear and began clicking its beak rapidly.

"Oh? That does sound suspicious. Thanks so much for telling me. I'll go inform Vinyl and Rainbow. You all can go do your thing now," she said, addressing the other critters. "Remember to keep your eyes peeled, okay?"

The little animals dispersed, some heading back to do what they were doing before, others going towards Ponyville to start on their reconnaissance.

***Twilight & Pinkie***

Twilight and Pinkie, a.k.a. Vinyl and Rainbow, were sitting around in the cabin, waiting on dinner. Vinyl had given them a run-through of their captors' schedules before they locked themselves up. Silverwind had just popped in with their dinner and left, so it was safe for Twilight to remove her muzzle.

"I hope the others find something out soon, Pinkie. The longer we stay here, the more chance we have of getting caught. And we completely forgot to ask about how long these potions are supposed to last."

"It'll be okay, Twilight," replied Pinkie. "I'm sure Zecora prepared us for an extended stay."

"I sure hope so, Pinkie. This whole investigation depends on us convincing our captors that we're the real Vinyl and Rainbow."

"We can pull it off. You don't even have to talk, so you don't have anything to worry about."

The two shared a laugh. "Well, one thing is for sure. With our friends working on this out there, we won't need to be here long."

"You got that right, Twilight! Hey, that rhymed!"

***Vinyl and Rainbow***

Rainbow Dash sluggishly woke up, still not as well-rested as she would have liked after the previous day's ordeal, but did not opt to go back to sleep as she normally would have.

Her thoughts were interrupted as she noticed her beloved Unicorn was missing from where she had fallen asleep the previous night. The smell of hay-fries being baked was a good indicator of where her missing marefriend had gone off to.

Rainbow trotted into the kitchen area to find Zecora and Vinyl working on breakfast. "Good morning, sweetie!" called Vinyl as she heard Rainbow's hoofsteps.

"Good morning, guys. You're up awfully early."

"I think you'll find, Rainbow Dash," replied Zecora. "That sleep makes the day go by in a flash."

Rainbow looked out the window and up at the sky. Judging from the position of the sun, it was already past noon! They didn't get up early; She slept late!

"Why didn't you wake me up?" she asked.

"You looked too peaceful. I didn't want to disturb you." replied Vinyl. "I know how you like your sleep."

"Thanks. I needed the rest after yesterday. I don't see how you were able to wake up normally."

"I've spent my whole life partying the nights away for a living. You get used to it."

There was a knock at the door. "Uhm, guys?" came the voice of Fluttershy. "I have some information that might be helpful."

Zecora let the shy pony inside. "What is the news, Fluttershy? It must be big for you to stop by."

"Oh, yes, I think it will be quite helpful. A little birdie told me that he saw a male pony in a camoflage jumpsuit headed towards Sweet Apple Acres earlier today."

"Camo jumpsuit?" exclaimed Rainbow. "That's the same kind of clothing the guys who attacked me were wearing! They must be after Applejack! But what do they want with her?"

"I don't know. What do you, her and Vinyl all have in common?"

"I don't know." said Rainbow. "Me and AJ are connected to the Elements, but Vinyl is out on that department, so that can't be it."

"We're all mares, too, but I don't see what's so special about that." replied Vinyl.

The four of them spent the next several minutes thinking over what attribute that Vinyl, Rainbow, and Applejack could all share that would make them targets. Nothing came to mind.

Finally, Rainbow realized something. "I got it!" she declared. "None of us date stallions! We all like other mares! That's gotta be it! We all know that there are other ponies that are really prejudiced against that kind of thing."

"Well, in that case," began Vinyl. "The pony pulling the strings might have some connections to the anti-gay community. It could possibly even be someone in power within that circle."

"Yeah, but this is just a guess. I don't think I'm wrong, but there's still a chance that I am. It's probably not worth investigating until we know for certain."

"Yeah, you're right." admitted Vinyl.

"Well, I just thought I would share that with you guys. I have my other little animal friends on the lookout as well. Is there anything else you need?" asked Fluttershy.

"Yes, there is, actually." said Rainbow. "I need you to fly as fast as you can to Sweet Apple Acres and see if you can find any signs of a struggle. Applejack's not gonna let them get her, not without a heck of a fight at least."

"Okay, I'll get there as quick as I can."

"Thanks, Fluttershy. We really appreciate all of your help with this." thanked Vinyl, giving the pink-maned Pegasus a wide smile.

"No problem, girls. I'm gonna head out now. I'll be back after I check out the farm." Fluttershy took of from the hut towards Sweet Apple Acres.

Fluttershy flew as fast as her wings would carry her towards Sweet Apple Acres. She hoped that Applejack would be alright. As the house came into view, she decelerated and began her descent. As she landed, she folded her wings in and trotted to the door, knocking softly.

After a few moments, Big Macintosh opened the door. "Ayyyyyeeeup?"

"Oh, hello, Big Mac, I was wondering if Applejack was around."

"Nnnnnnnope. She woke up early to get her chores done and left for Canterlot."

"Canterlot?!" exclaimed Fluttershy. "Oh, this is bad. Very, very bad."

"What's the problem?" asked Big Mac.

"There are some bad ponies looking for Applejack, and her going to Canterlot might just make her easier to get to."

"Bad ponies? Ya mean like this one?" Big Mac stepped out of the doorway to show Fluttershy a stallion in a camoflage jumpsuit tied to a chair with a gag in his mouth.

"Yes, exactly like that one. I actually came here to see if they had gotten her."

"Nnnnnnnope. This one came here lookin' for trouble, so we gave him trouble. We were gonna wait 'till Applejack got back to interrogate him, but ya seem to know what's goin' on, too."

"Yes, I'm going to go and tell Rainbow Dash what happened here. She's involved in this, too. Just keep him tied up. Thank you for your time, Big Mac!"

"Ayyyyyyyyeeeup."

Fluttershy took off back into the Everfree forest, eager to tell Rainbow and Vinyl what she just found out.

Fluttershy soon arrived back at Zecora's hut and knocked on the door. Zecora let her in. "Well, hello, Fluttershy. So nice of you to once again drop by."

"Oh my gosh, you guys, I have some really great news!" began the timid pony.

"What is it?" cried Rainbow Dash. "Is Applejack okay?"

"Oh, about that... I have some bad news, too. First off, the good news is that not only did the ponynapper not get Applejack, he's bound and gagged in a chair back at the farm."

"That's great!" replied Vinyl. "But what's the bad news?"

"Well... The reason he didn't get Applejack is because... She kind of left for Canterlot earlier today."

"Canterlot!" cried Rainbow. "This is bad. Very, very bad."

"That's what I said. What should we do?"

"We need to get to Canterlot as fast as possible to warn Applejack that she's a target, too." said Vinyl. "Which gives me an idea. Rainbow, we're going to Canterlot!"

"What?!" cried Rainbow, shocked at Vinyl having said something like that. "Why? We would be sitting ducks!"

"Exactly. We head to Canterlot, and bring backup. Big Mac has already subdued one of the ponies that are after us, if we can find Applejack and stay close, it would be more than enough for them to make a move, and when they do, we'll be ready."

"You're getting too gung-ho about this, Vinyl." replied the cyan Pegasus. "Think about it. If we get spotted in Canterlot, what's gonna happen when word of it reaches the ones who are supposed to be watching us at the cabin? Twilight and Pinkie's cover will be blown."

"Darn it!" cried Vinyl. "You're right. But what if we just have them bust out? Then they won't have to be imprisoned any more, AND they'll be specifically looking for us when we show up in Canterlot! On top of that, We'll have Twilight and Pinkie to back us up when they make a move!"

"Yeah, and even if they're not operating from Canterlot, if we just stick together, we'll be ready when they realize we're gone and come for us again!" exclaimed Rainbow. "I'll go and spring Twilight and Pinkie. We got a train to catch!"

***Applejack***

The orange farm pony was making considerable progress in Canterlot. She had already gotten the names of some extremely high-class, wealthy ponies using the Manehattan accent and 'ladylike' behavior she had been forced to learn as a filly when she stayed with her Aunt and Uncle Orange. She was almost satisfied, but wanted to get a few more names in before going to rest at the hotel room she had booked.

She trotted along the streets of Canterlot, keeping an eye out for anypony that looked rich or important. She had already talked with many of the ponies she saw, and did not particularly care to talk with them again. She kept walking.

It was getting late, and there was no sign of anypony that stood out. Then again, not standing out was probably a specialty of whoever was behind her friends' kidnapping. Even so, Applejack decided to head back to her room. She would search around again in the morning. As she trotted off towards the hotel, she was intercepted by two ponies in black jumpsuits.

"And who might y'all be?" she demanded.

"Our names are not important," replied one of the ponies, a stallion. "You're coming with us."

"Ah very much doubt that. There ain't no way Ah'm goin' with y'all unless you can force me."

"We figured that might be the case, which is why we brought this." The stallion picked up a baseball bat off the ground and brandished it in his teeth.

"Bring it on." the orange pony challenged.

The unarmed one rushed her, and she turned around and bucked with her hind legs. He was agile, however, and ducked underneath, aiming a kick at her flank. She dodged, noticing the one with the bat coming at her fast. She ducked the first swing, rearing back and kicking her attacker with all her might in the ribs. He dropped the bat, completely winded, and was sent flying into some garbage cans. Applejack picked up the bat and swung at the other pony's head. He ducked and tried to trip her hind legs, but those were quite possibly the worst parts of her body to try and target. Her legs barely budged, and he got a swift crack over the head with the bat for his effort. The other pony recovered from Applejack's kick, limping to his left side from Applejack's brutal kick. He tried to rush her again, but was caught off-guard when the farm pony dropped the bat, opting to stand on her hind legs and hit him in the face with her hoof instead. He sank to the ground, knocked unconscious from the shot.

"And that's how we get it done, Ponyville style!" she declared before lifting her attackers onto her back and trotting off towards her hotel, the extra weight seeming to have no effect on her.

When she arrived at the hotel with two unconscious ponies on her back, the clerk was about to ask what she was doing with them. Applejack was quick to cut her off. "Aww, you know how partiers are," she lied. "They had a little too much cider, so I opted to bring 'em with me for the night."

Applejack did not like lying to anypony, but she knew it was necessary in order to not raise suspicion.

When she opened the door to her hotel, she got straight to work getting the two ponies hogtied. When she was finished securing them to the chairs, she laid down in her bed and passed out, exhausted from the day's ordeal.


	10. Chapter 10

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt. 10

Nothing could have been more satisfying to Twilight Sparkle and Pinkie Pie than to spring themselves from captivity. The prison break was made all the sweeter of an experience when Silverwind and Firehooves were there to be caught in the blast Twilight set off to destroy their bindings. The two ponynappers were knocked to the walls so hard that the cabin shuddered, and were knocked unconscious upon impact. Twilight considered dragging them back to Zecora's for interrogation, but let them be when Rainbow Dash convinced her otherwise.

"Just leave them here," she had said. "We need to let them go so that they can report the jailbreak to their employer."

Twilight and Pinkie had consumed a potion to return them to their normal appearance that Zecora had prepared, and they, along with Vinyl Scratch and Rainbow Dash, were on the train bound for Canterlot.

Twilight Sparkle silently prayed that it was not too late to warn the orange cowpony.

The train slowly ground to a halt, signaling that it had arrived at its destination, and the destination of the four ponies on board. As soon as they disembarked from the locomotive, Rainbow Dash realized something was amiss. Something important.

"Oh, haysticks!" she shouted. "We forgot Rarity!"

The others paled and their hearts sank as they imagined the drama queen's anger when she found out they had gone to Canterlot without her. She would scold them all to no end! But that was unimportant at the time. The current priority was finding Applejack.

"Okay, everypony, let's spread out and see if we can find Applejack!" shouted Vinyl.

A blue stallion at the counter in an expensive-looking suit perked up at the mention of the farm pony's name. "Excuse me, did you say Applejack? Why, I spoke with a mare by that name just yesterday."

"Orange coat, blonde mane?" inquired Rainbow Dash.

"Yes, that's the one!" replied the stranger in his posh accent. "If you need to find her, I believe she is staying at the hotel on Colt Street."

"Thank you so much for the info, sir." said Twilight.

"Not a problem, miss. Always happy to help a pony in need."

The four ponies tore off towards Colt Street with Twilight leading the way, for obvious reasons.

The party of ponies arrived at the hotel, and Twilight asked the receptionist about Applejack.

"Oh, her? She left some time ago, said she would be back later tonight."

"Thank you, ma'am. Have a nice day." said Twilight.

The foursome departed, deciding to search the streets together rather than split up. They had no luck in finding their friend, however, and as the night crept up on them, they elected to go back to the hotel and see if Applejack had checked back in.

When asked about her again, the receptionist had an interesting reaction.

"She came back in a few minutes ago carrying two passed-out stallions in black jumpsuits on her back like they were completely weightless! I've never seen such a strong mare!"

Rainbow smirked. "Yeah, that's our Applejack. But I wonder what's up with those other two she had with her?"

"Ma'am, can you tell us what room she's staying in?" asked Twilight.

"Oh, of course. Room 206, second floor, first door on the left as soon as you exit the staircase."

"Thanks so much. Have a good night!" thanked the purple Unicorn.

They arrived at Applejack's doorstep. Rainbow slammed her hoof on the door repeatedly. "Hey, AJ! It's us, open up!"

***Applejack***

Applejack had just fallen asleep when she was rudely awakened by a loud knock on her door. Actually, it was less like whoever it was was knocking, and more like they were committing door homicide. "Hey, AJ, it's us, open up!" came the unmistakable voice of Rainbow Dash. What was that pony doing here? Doesn't she know it's not safe for her to be in public, especially in a city like Canterlot? Applejack stepped off of her bed to go answer the door.

"What in the hay are y'all doin' here?" she demanded.

"No time! Let us in!" cried Pinkie.

Applejack stepped aside and allowed the four extra sets of hooves to enter her room. "Okay, you're all in mah room. Now tell me what's goin' on! Why are Twilight and Pinkie out of their shackles and why are Vinyl and Rainbow not keepin' themselves hidden?"

"Okay," began Twilight. "Fluttershy got word that another ponynapper was headed towards Sweet Apple Acres earlier today, but Big Mac took care of him. That got Rainbow and Vinyl wondering what they wanted with you as well as them. They were trying to think of something the three of you had in common, and the only thing they were able to come up with was that all three of you were all lesbian, meaning that whoever is behind this is a really rich anti-gay pony, so we came to warn you about being another of their targets. Although, from the looks of those two," twilight acknowledged to unconscious stallions hogtied to the chairs. "It looks like you figured it out the hard way."

"Yeah, one of 'em came at me with a baseball bat, but Ah taught 'em better than to mess with me. But that still don't explain why y'all left your posts. Ah thought we had a plan."

"Well, we found out that you had already left for Canterlot, and with you walking the streets practically begging to get ponynapped, we figured it would be best to make a statement about who these ponies are messing with. If we all stick together, they'll need more than a few scary-looking ponies in jumpsuits to get the better of us. With you as a target walking around Canterlot, there was no longer any point in being subtle."

"Ah guess Ah understand that. Ah was about to get some much-needed rest until y'all came a-knockin'. Tell ya what." Applejack opened a drawer and tossed Twilight a sack full of money. "Go downstairs and get yourselves a room. We'll talk more in the mornin', 'cause Ah'm plum tuckered out."

"Okay, AJ. We'll let you get some sleep."

"Much appreciated, Twi. Oh, and there's enough bits in thar for two rooms, so y'all don't gotta cramp four ponies into these tiny quarters. Good night, y'all."

"Good night, Applejack." said Twilight.

The ponies got room keys and went their separate ways, sleeping two to a room. Twilight and Pinkie shared one, while Rainbow and Vinyl got the other.

Rainbow Dash unlocked the door to her and Vinyl's room and immediately leapt onto the bed. "Ah, sweet relaxation. It feels so nice after a long day of dealing with this whole pile of hay."

"I know what you mean, sweetie." replied Vinyl. "I'm pretty tired myself."

"Well, come on, join me in the bed." invited the cyan Pegasus, patting the vacant spot on the bed.

Vinyl smiled in relief. Ever since this whole mess had come up, she barely got to spend any quality time with her beloved Rainbow Dash anymore. Their conversations usually concerned the investigation. She was starting to feel less like Rainbow's marefriend and more like her coworker, so it was nice to finally be able to act like real lovers again.

Vinyl laid down beside her dear Pegasus and leaned in for a kiss. It was only meant to last a moment, but the two got caught in that moment. They pressed their lips together with a renewed passion, wrapping their hooves around each other in a tight embrace. When at last they needed to breathe, their lips parted, but they stayed tightly hugged together.

"I love you so much, Vinyl Scratch. I can't wait until we find out who's doing this so things can go back to normal."

"I love you, too, Rainbow Dash. And believe me, I'm as anxious as you are to see the end of this stupid drama."

They kissed and cuddled for the next hour, telling each other how much they loved each other until exhaustion finally claimed them. The two lovers laid down on the bed, and Vinyl fell asleep in the comfort of Rainbow Dash's hooves, feeling like their relationship and their love for each other had finally been rekindled.


	11. Chapter 11

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt. 11

Applejack sat outside at a table across the street from from her hotel. The interrogation of the two ponies that had attacked her had provided valuable information, the most significant of which pertained to their employer's ultimate goal. He had planned to kill Applejack and Vinyl Scratch, forcing Rainbow Dash to watch before killing her as well in an ultimate statement against "dirty, sinful fillyfoolers" as the duo had said, quoting their boss. Twilight blanked their memories and Rainbow carried them to the neighboring town to prevent their superiors from getting to them again.

Applejack sipped her tea, tying to pull of her best posh, citypony facade to the best of her ability. No matter how much the farm pony loathed acting out of her usual mannerisms, she had to do it. For the sake of the plan.

On the hotel rooftop, Rainbow Dash scouted the area around Applejack for anypony acting suspiciously. One stallion in particular had caught her attention, as he repeatedly glanced up at Applejack inquisitively, as if trying to discern who exactly she was, and then looking back down at a slip of paper on his table seemingly as some sort of reference. Rainbow jotted down a quick note of him before focusing on the other ponies in the area.

Twilight and Vinyl observed the scene from the window of her room. Twilight was scouting the area like Rainbow, but Vinyl's eyes were focused on Applejack. She was to stay put until Applejack gave the signal. This was the first time either of them had ever participated in a stakeout, and Vinyl hated it. It bored her beyond imagination to have to do nothing but sit around and keep her focus on a single object for an extended time period. Twilight, on the other hand, was delighted at the opportunity to keep her mind trained on a singular concept, especially after how hectic things had been since Rainbow and Vinyl had burst into Zecora's hut a few days ago.

Applejack glanced up at the hotel rooftop to see if Rainbow Dash had spotted anything. The Pegasus pointed to her left, the direction of the stallion that had been watching Applejack. The orange Earth Pony set down her tea and pretended to stretch her hooves.

Vinyl Scratch acknowledged the signal from Applejack. The white Unicorn trotted down to the lobby and out the door, where Applejack motioned to her right. Vinyl nodded and began heading in the direction Applejack highlighted.

Rainbow Dash watched as her beloved mare trotted down the street towards the shady stallion. As she passed him by, he motioned over towards an alleyway, where two ponies previously unseen by Rainbow walked out casually, although Rainbow knew they were following Vinyl.

It was Twilight's turn to move now. She exited the hotel and quickly spotted the ponies on Vinyl's tail. She trotted in a casual manner much like the ponies she was stalking, only her pace was slightly quickened to catch up to her targets without making it obvious that she was following them.

Rainbow made her move several minutes later when the stallion at the table gathered his belongings to leave. She had to give him credit. Even when Vinyl passed him by, he had no reaction despite the fact that she was supposed to be imprisoned in that cabin instead of roaming the streets freely. She kept to the rooftops, stalking her target from the high ground.

As Vinyl manuevered through the streets, perfectly aware of the two ponies tailing her, she kept her casual facade up until the time was right. She turned into an alleyway and turned at the end of it to see her followers staring her down, slowly advancing on her. She smirked as they were both lifted into the air, immobilized by Twilight's magic. Vinyl picked up a 2x4 from the ground and gave both of them a good swing on the top of the head, rendering them unconscious. Twilight tossed them into the nearby dumpster and the two Unicorns rushed to get back to Applejack.

Rainbow Dash trailed the stallion for a few minutes as he circled the block. He made an error when he turned into an alleyway, apparently searching for his partners in crime. Rainbow swooped down and knocked him out with a whack to the jaw, then carried him by the hooves back to the hotel rooftop, where she found Applejack waiting by her top-floor window to recieve the unconscious pony.

Several minutes passed before the stallion regained consciousness. "Wh- where am I? What happened?" He dragged his eyes open to be met with the sight of Rainbow Dash, Vinyl Scratch, and Applejack staring at him with cocky grins on their faces.

"N-no! You're supposed to be at the cabin!" he exclaimed, referring to Rainbow and Vinyl.

"Yeah, well, your accomodations were less than hospitable, so we decided to take our leave early." replied Vinyl. "Now, tell us who you work for!"

"I will never tell you anything, you disgraceful fillyfooler!"

"Okay, that's fine." said Applejack, the sarcasm practically oozing from her voice. "Ah guess you win. You iron will has gotten the best of us, so, as a congratulations, we're gonna throw ya a party! Let's start with the music. Hope ya like it. Vinyl here mixed it herself."

Vinyl wore an evil grin as she turned on the CD player and crankes the volume up to its maximum. Immediately the room was filled with horrible synthesizer sounds that only a professional DJ could mix so badly on purpose.

"Well, Ah guess A'll see ya after a while! We gotta go pick up some things for supper!" Applejack called as they left the room, shutting and locking the door leaving their latest captive to suffer the horrid sounds of Vinyl's monstrosity, unable to do anything about it due to his being tied to a chair.

Several hours passed before Vinyl and the others returned to the hotel room to see if their captive was ready to talk. Vinyl turned off the music and Applejack began the questions again.

"Now, Ah'll ask again. Who do ya work for?"

"You think some bad music will break me? You will never get any information from me!"

"You might as well talk, you know." said Rainbow. "Regardless of whether or not you give us the information, we will figure it out inevitably. We have ways of getting what we want. All you're doing by not giving us the name we want is making yourself suffer more. And if you're worried about your boss tracking you down, don't worry. We're gonna take him down anyways. If we can read into his plans and mess you up as easily as we did today, we're going to get to your boss and bring him down with almost no effort anyways. And I'll make you a deal. Tell us what we want to know, and I'll make sure you even still get whatever he was gonna pay you for this."

"He wasn't going to pay me! I volunteered! You fillyfoolers are an abomination to Equestria. Love is only supposed to be between a stallion and a mare, not two stallions or two mares! You make me sick!" He tried to sound sincere, but that music had been torturous. Plus, she made a very good point. They were able to foil the plan to capture Applejack easily by sending Vinyl out as a distraction, and could probably shut down anything else the boss thought of with just as much ease.

He hid it well, but Vinyl was still able to percieve the weakness in his voice. He was close to being broken. "You know what we could do, Rainbow Dash?"

"What, sweetie?" Rainbow used her best innocent voice.

"We could show him the true beauty of two mares in love. Applejack could make him watch, or join in, I don't mind."

"We could. Although he might not like such gross, sinful acts happening in front of him. What do you think, Applejack?"

Applejack almost asked what the hay was wrong with their minds, but then she realized what they were actually playing at. "Ah'm all for it. It's been a long time since I've been able to... relieve all the pent-up tension in mah body."

The stallion was horrified at her words. They were going to do that and make him watch? He might have been able to handle it, but the thought of all three of them participating was just too much. "Okay, okay! I'll tell you what you want to know! I'll tell you everything! Just please do NOT do that in front of me! It's so disgusting, so unnatural!"

The three ponies smiled. "Okay, now, tell us," began Rainbow. "Who do you work for and where is he hiding?"

"He's not hiding anywhere. In fact, you know him quite well. He resides in Ponyville, as a matter of fact."

Rainbow Dash already had a good idea of who was behind all of this just off of knowing he lived in Ponyville. "Tell us. What is his name?"

The stallion smiled. "Filthy Rich."


	12. Chapter 12

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt. 12

"How could you?!" screamed Rarity to her friends. "How could you go to Canterlot and not take me?! I can't believe you could be so inconsiderate as to not bring me with you!" it had been several days since they found out the pony that was pulling all of the strings of the events that had transpired lately.

"Rarity," said Applejack. "That's not important right now. The important thing is that-"

"Are you kidding me? It is of paramount importance! And to think I consider you my friends, even after you committed such an atrosity!"

"Rarity, Ah'm tryina explain to you-"

"There is nothing to explain! You abandoned me here in Ponyvill and took off to have a good time in Canterlot! Why would you-"

"WE FOUND OUT WHO'S BEHIND THE PONYNAPPINGS!" shouted Rainbow Dash, the sheer volumeof her voice forcing everyone else in the room to cover their ears.

Rarity's ears drooped. "Oh... You were there on business..."

"Yes, Rarity, and you should know that the pony behind the curtains has been sitting here in Ponyville the entire time. Filthy Rich is the one who had us captured. Also, he planned on getting me, Vinyl, and AJ and forcing me to watch as they were murdered, then they were gonna murder me."

"Oh, dear, that's horrid! Whatever for, though? Why would Filthy Rich want you all dead?"

"Because," replied Vinyl. "He has an extremely anti-gay agenda, and probably has strong ties to the fundamentalist groups spread out in Equestria. He's so against same-sex partnerships that he was going to kill us to ensure the "purity" of Ponyville."

"Oh, my." said Rarity. "I always suspected he was an old-fashioned sort of pony, but I never thought he took it to that extreme."

"Yeah, well, it doesn't matter how extreme his views are." declared Rainbow. "No one, and I mean NO ONE, messes with my friends OR my marefriend and gets away with it. I'm gonna make him regret ever coming to Ponyville!"

"That's all well and good, sweetie," replied Vinyl. "But we need a plan. It's not like we can just walk up to Filthy and beat him senseless in broad daylight. We need to handle this with a bit more tact."

"Why don't we just call the police?" asked Twilight. "Seems like they would be able to handle it."

"It won't do us any good." explained Vinyl. "Based on the way he's been conducting this scheme of his, Filthy more than likely is paying them off to overlook what he does. Also, even if he wasn't paying them off, we have no proof to our claim."

"What about the cabin in the forest?" asked Fluttershy. "Surely that would constitute at least a little suspicion."

"Yeah, it would, if it were still there." said Rainbow. "Zecora went to check it out yesterday and it was gone. There's not even any evidence it had been there to begin with. Filthy knows how to cover his tracks."

"I think I know what we can do." said Vinyl, smiling deviously.

Rainbow Dash knew that smile. Whatever plan Vinyl had in mind, it was going to be good.

***Four days later***

Rarity was enjoying a relaxing bath at the Day Spa. The warm water on her coat, the brush running through her mane, the revitalizing face mask; This was the royal treatment. But, sadly, she was not there purely for pleasure. There was business that had to be attended to while she was there. She was just waiting on the pony she would be conducting this business with.

Filthy Rich trotted into the bath area, lacking his normal business attire.

"Ah, Rarity! How wonderful to see you again!"

"Likewise, Rich." replied Rarity, trying her best to keep a calm composure in front of the pony that wanted her friends dead. "How have you been?"

"Busy as ever. I've been having to move a lot of money around for business reasons lately, and poring over checks and bank statements has eaten up most of my free time. So, how are you? Any particular reason you asked me to meet you here?"

"Oh, not really. I just wanted to catch up with you. It's been a long time since we were able to have a nice, friendly day together without work getting in the way."

"Indeed it has. So, how about you? I assume your work has been keeping you on edge just as much as mine has, if not more so."

"Oh, yes. Esecially since I have to make sure my little sister doesn't destroy anything or get into anything she shouldn't be getting into. It's quite taxing." Rarity faked a smile, despising every minute of having to act friendly towards this monstrosity sitting before her. It would only be a few more minutes, hopefully, and then she would be able to ask her question.

Filthy chuckled, taking amusement at the thought of Sweetie Belle getting into Rarity's beauty products and fabrics and making various messes of things. "Well, I do hope you find a way to keep her under control. A hardworking pony such as yourself surely does not deserve to have to keep up with a little filly causing disaster at every turn."

"Oh, don't I know it. If only I could put her on a leash or something." The thought of putting her dear sister on a leash horrified Rarity, but she needed to get on Filthy's good side as much as possible.

"Yes, well, I could say the same thing about Diamond Tiara. She can be quite a nuisance, especially when I'm working."

Rarity was raging on the inside, but was able to maintain her facade. How dare he think of leashing his own daughter! The monster! "Hm, well, I'm going to get cleaned up now. I have some work that needs doing at the shop. Would you mind if I dropped by your place later on this evening?"

"Oh, not at all, Rarity! Distinguished mares such as yourself are always welcome in my household! I look forward to seeing you tonight!"

"Wonderful. I'll see you later, then. See you tonight, Rich!" Rarity departed, relieved to finally be away from that horrid excuse for a stallion. Time to report back to her friends.

The rest of the group were sitting around the shop waiting on Rarity to come in with good news. Rainbow and Vinyl were asleep on the floor, cuddled in each other's hooves. Applejack and Twilight were engaged in a game of chess, and Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were playing patty-cake (at Pinkie's request, of course).

The bell that signaled someone walking into the shop rang and Rarity stepped into the doorway. "I have great news! I'm in! I'm going to Filthy's house tonight for dinner, and the plan is going smoothly!"

"Good job, Rarity." complimented Twilight. "Now, if we can make sure Diamond Tiara is out of the house tonight, we can make our move."

"Jus' don't inform the poor filly. She don't need to be knowin' about any o' this at her age." requested Applejack.

"I am aware of the delicate situation. Let me assure you that I can get Diamond out of the house without a problem. I will just tell her that Silver Spoon asked me to tell her to meet her in front of town hall. That should keep her away for a bit."

"Good. Then we had best start preparing for tonight." suggested Twilight.

***Filthy's manor***

Rarity knocked softly on the hoof-carved gothic door. Hoofington, the butler, answered. "Ah, Rarity, so nice to see you again. Come on inside. Master Rich is in his study at the moment. He has been expecting you."

"Why, thank you, Hoofington. It's nice to see you again as well."

There was a soft patter of hooves as Diamond Tiara trotted into the entrance hall.

"Rarity!" she exclaimed. She ran over to the beauty queen and hugged her tightly. "It's so great to see you again! How have you been?"

Rarity looked down into the little filly's eyes. She could not help but feel sorry for the poor kid. The only reason she acted so snobbish in school was because of the lack of attention she got from her cruel father. It seemed like Rarity and Silver Spoon were the only people close to her. Her own father had just been talking about leashing her.

"I've been great, Diamond." she said, again putting on her friendly face. "But, as I was passing by, I saw Silver Spoon and she asked me to let you know that she wants to see you over by the town hall. She said it was important and that she didn't have long to wait before she had to leave."

"Oh, okay. Thanks, Rarity! I'd better go see what she needs." Diamond Tiara galloped from the house towards town hall.

"If you'll excuse me, madam, I must attend to the dinner preparations." Hoofington dismissed himself to the kitchen.

As soon as Diamond Tiara was out of view, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy moved into position below the second-story windows. Applejack and Twilight stepped out from behind the nearby bushes and locked hooves with the Pegasi. Rarity made her way up to the second floor and opened the windows to allow her friends to get in. Vinyl was next to be airlifted into the manor. They made their way silently towards Filthy Rich's study. Rarity knocked softly on the closed door.

"Filthy Rich!" she called in a singsong voice. "I'm here!"

"Come on in, Rarity. The door is unlocked." called Filthy.

Rarity gently opened the door. As soon as it had opened enough for each of them to get a full view of Filthy sitting at his desk, they all swarmed him, holding him down on the floor. Vinyl soundproofed the room to ensure no one could hear what was about to happen.

"Alright, now talk!" demanded Rainbow Dash. "We know you're the one behind all of this mess! Why are you so against fillyfoolers, and why do you want us dead?"

"I'll never talk! You horrid little insects will never get anything out of me! HOOFINGTON! I NEED YOU UP HERE NOW!"

"He can't hear you," said Vinyl. "Because I soundproofed this room with my magic."

"You stupid fillyfooling worms will never defeat me! I am the great Filthy Rich! No one can defeat me! I have enough money to buy all of Ponyville AND Cloudsdale if I wanted to! You think it means anything that you figured me out? Bah! I will never stop my quest to purge Equestria of you horrible sinners! I want all of you to die, and if it weren't for the incompetency of my employees, you would be dead! All three of you wretched, mare-loving barbarians!"

"Well, guess what!" exclaimed Applejack. "We're all alive and kickin', and we're takin' ya down, ya sorry excuse for a pony!"

"You? Take me down? HA! That's the most ridiculous sentiment anyone has ever said!"

"Oh, really?" replied Twilight. "I'm sure the recording on my earpiece would like to argue that point. You just confessed to conspiracy to commit murder. You're going to be in prison for a long time. And don't worry about Diamond Tiara. We'll see to it that she gets put in a good home where she'll actually be cared for and loved instead of neglected and ignored."

"No... No, I can't go to prison! I just can't! I'm not cut out for prison!"

"Shoulda thought about that before you messed with us!" said Vinyl.

Twilght delivered the recording to the police and Filthy Rich was arrested. Diamond Tiara was sent to live with Rarity and Sweetie Belle. It was difficult keeping up with an extra filly, but Rarity saw to it that Diamond got all the love and affection her father had never offered.

Rainbow Dash and Vinyl Scratch were finally able to relax. The arrest of Filthy meant that they were able to finally enjoy being a couple. There had never been a pair of ponies more in love than those two.

A few weeks after Filthy's arrest, Vinyl landed a recording contract with a big-time music company based in Los Manegeles. She was so highly desired by the company that they still accepted her even when she made the condition that she was never to be obligated to travel and do live performances, and would be able to work at home with her own equipment. She only DJ'd for parties whenever she truly wanted to, and not just because the needed the money. The company paid her quite handsomely to send in her beats and mixes. Everything had finally settled down and there were no more homicidal ponies to track down.

Or so they thought...

Rainbow Dash was making her way to Vinyl's apartment after training all day for Cloudsdale's next flying competition. It was late at night, and she was already late for their dinner date. She sped up her pace, hoping to get there before Vinyl got too upset over it. As she passed by an alleyway, a large stallion rushed out from it and rammed her in the side, knocking her to the ground.

"Ouch! Hey,watch where you're-"

The stallion interrupted by pressing a hoof to Rainbow's chest. He began pushing down with his full weight, which was a lot. Rainbow found herself short of breath, and tried to think of a way out of this. She settled for brute force. She kicked him in the ribcage repeatedly with her rear legs, trying to inflict enough pain to weaken her assailant. It eventually bore fruit; She felt the pressure on her chest decrease enough for her to free herself. She immediately reared up and kicked the wincing stallion square in the jaw as he was recovering from the pain in his ribs.

He went down hard. Still barely conscious, the fiesty Pegasus pressed a hoof to his throat, keeping her body away from his legs to prevent him from forcing his way out in the same manner she had.

"Who are you and what do you want with me?" she demanded.

"My name is not important," he said. "What is important is that I was hired to kill you."

"HIRED BY WHO?! WHO WANTS ME DEAD THIS TIME?!"

"The same ones who wanted you dead last time."

"That's impossible! Filthy Rich is behind bars, he can't do anything!"

"Filthy rich was never the mastermind. He was just the finacial support for the plan. The real mastermind works in the shadows of the criminal underworld. When Filthy got busted, he simply found somepony else to finance this. He'll never stop, not until you're dead."

"Well, if you want to live, I suggest you tell me more! I'm not opposed to killing someone who tried to kill me!"

"If you let me go, I'll tell you. Please, just don't kill me."

"Tell me who the real leader is to this operation, and I'll let you live."

"His name is Greyson. I don't know much else. All I know is the name Greyson."

"Where does he operate from?"

"I don't know. He keeps a lot of secrets. He's like a ghost. No one even knows he exists except for the people who work with him directly. I'm one of those people."

"That's all I need to know. You're free to go." Rainbow Dash released her hold on his throat and allowed him to stand up. "But if I EVER see your face around Ponyville again, it will not end well for you. I promise."

The beaten stallion ran off into the night, having no intention of ever visiting Ponyville again.

Rainbow Dash flew at full speed to Vinyl's house and knocked on the door. Vinyl answered.

Rainbow started immediately. "Hey, baby, I know I'm late, but I got caught up with something. Close the door; We need to talk."


	13. Chapter 13

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt. 13

"Ah suppose it makes sense," said Applejack as she paced back and forth in front of the fireplace. "Filthy seemed a little stupid to have come up with a plan like that."

"Well, now we know who's really been behind all of this," said Twilight. "But that's the problem; A name is all we have. We don't even know where to begin looking. He doesn't even handle the money himself. He has somepony else handle that to keep his name out of it."

"As much as Ah hate to admit it, you're right, Twi. This Greyson character has been careful. Even with his name, we can't do nothin' 'cause nopony even knows he exists!"

"We're not even sure that's his real name. It could be an alias." commented Vinyl.

"Well, the pony that attacked me had a really thick Manehattan accent. If he works directly with Greyson, maybe that's a good place to start." suggested Rainbow Dash.

"Maybe," said Twilight. "But we need more to work with than somepony's accent before doing anything."

"But that's the thing;" replied Rainbow. "We may not get anything else to work with. This guy is pretty secretive."

"Rainbow has a point." commented Rarity. "We can't just sit by and let these attacks continue until we do get more information. What happens when they actually get one of them?"

"I know one thing," said Vinyl. "If I were in his hooves, I would change tactics by now. It would probably be less about making the statement and more about just killing us and getting it over with. We've already proven that doing it the extravagant way and trying to pretty up our killings is doomed to fail. He's going to be a lot more direct now. He might even resort to hiring ponies to kill us on sight."

"All the more reason for us to take action right now on any leads we have. I say we go to Manehattan to see if we can uncover anything!"

"I do see your point, Vinyl," admitted Twilight. "But even if we went to Manehattan to snoop around, we don't even really know what to look for."

"Even so, Twi," said Applejack. "We can't jus' sit around an' let him keep sending assassins out on us. Eventually, they're gonna get the best of us, no matter how much we prepare for it. He jus' don't seem to have a limit to how many ponies he can send after us. We need to at least try Manehattan. We can stay with my Aunt and Uncle..." Applejack paused, the mention of her Aunt and Uncle Orange reminding her of something. "Wait a minute. There were a bunch of weird symbols decoratin' the walls in Filthy's house. What did they look like again?"

"It was a symbol of the two gender symbols intersecting." answered Twilight.

"The same symbols are all over my Aunt and Uncle's place! I bet they're in the same ring Filty was! If they're high up enough on the ladder, they might be able to lead us to Greyson! Or at least somepony else who can."

"Maybe," replied Vinyl. "But how are we gonna get information from them without making it obvious?"

"I have something in mind!"declared Twilight. "Applejack could go and stay with them for a while, and we could keep surveillance on them while she's Whenever we can't keep an eye on them, like when they're in the house, we can just have Applejack tell us what's going on."

Vinyl'e eye twitched. The idea of another stakeout did not exactly appeal to her. "I guess so, but wouldn't it be easier to plant bugs around their place?"

"Yeah, but it would also be riskier." Applejack answered. "The closer to them y'all are, the more chance there is of bein' discovered. Bugs are too close for comfort, and with the size of their place, it would need too many of them anyhow. The best way to do it is to watch them manually at a distance."

Vinyl frowned. "I guess you're right. Stakeout it is."

***Three Days Later***

Applejack knocked on the Oranges' front door, marveling at how she had the dumb luck to always be the one to have to go out in the open while the others kept their distance. She had been the intended target of the fundamentalists back in Canterlot, and now she was to get into her Aunt and Uncle's house to snoop around for information. On both occasions, she was the one to make herself noticed while the rest of her friends remained unnoticed.

The front door swung open, interrupting the cowpony's thoughts. "Oh, Applejack! How wonderful to see you again!" exclaimed her Aunt Orange.

"Hey, Aunt Orange. How ya been?"

Aunt Orange scrunched her nose at the sound of her niece's accent. "We never did finish your speech lessons the last time you were here, did we? Oh well, no matter. We can just pick up where we left off, I suppose. Come on in, dearie."

Applejack stepped inside. The long entrance hall was exactly as she remembered. Wooden carvings of the crossed gender symbols lined the walls along with old family photos.

"Oh, Applejack! How have you been, dear?" called Uncle Orange from the living room. "It's been too long!"

"I've been just fine, thanks. How 'bout y'all?"

Uncle Orange had a reaction similar to Aunt Orange's at hearing Applejack's accent. "Exquisite. Thank you for asking."

"Well, let me show you to your room!" said Aunt Orange.

"No, that's okay," replied Applejack. "Ah remember where it is. Thanks for lettin' me stay a few days!"

"Oh, no, dear, I'm afraid we have somepony else staying in your old room." said Uncle Orange.

"Oh, okay. Well, in that case, where's my new room?"

Aunt Orange started up the stairs. "Right this way, dearie."

Aunt Orange led Applejack up the stairs to the second floor. A few turns down the hallway later, she stopped at a closed door. "This is where you will be staying, sweetie."

Applejack opened the bedroom door, noticing that it was directly across the hall from her old room. "Thanks very much, Aunt Orange. Ah'm gonna lay down for a little nap. The trip here was exhausting."

"No problem, Applejack. Dinner will be ready in a few hours. Come on down when you wake up."

Applejack lay in her bed, wondering who else could be staying with her Aunt and Uncle. Another relative, perhaps? Her curiosity eventually got the best of her. She crossed the hallway to her old room and leaned in, one ear against the door. She could hear a faint snoring. Whoever was in there was asleep. She decided to take the opportunity to take a look. The orange farm pony took the doorknob in her hooves and and opened the door as silently as she could.

Applejack's eyes grew to the size of dinner plates when she saw the pony laying on the bed. A brown stallion with a gray mane slept on her bed, snoring lightly. None of that was significant to Applejack, however; The feature that startled her the most was his flank. Upon the sleeping stallion's flank was the cutie mark of the two gender symbols intersecting.


	14. Chapter 14

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt. 14

Applejack rushed out of the house immediately, slipping by her Aunt and Uncle without their notice and grabbing her hat off of the rack on her way out. This would be the second time she had left her Aunt and Uncle Oranges' house without telling them, but she had no choice this time. She had to get back to her friends and tell them about who she just found asleep on her old bed. All of those symbols in Filthy Rich's house and in her Aunt and Uncles' house matched the stallion's cutie mark exactly. It had to be Greyson. Applejack could not believe it. She and her friends had been searching for the cause of the attacks since Vinyl and Rainbow had burst into Zecora's hut that day, and now the source was sleeping at her Aunt and Uncles' house, completely vulnerable.

Applejack galloped towards the hotel down the road from her Aunt and Uncles' home. Her friends had gotten rooms there to stay while they were in Manehattan to watch the Oranges' house from a distance. Twilight had planned out what to do whenever the Oranges left the house in virtually any direction, even as far as what to do in the event that they flew away despite the fact that they were Earth Ponies.

Applejack knocked on the door to Rainbow and Vinyl's room furiously. "Guys, answer the door! Ah got something really important to tell ya!"

An irritated-looking Rainbow Dash opened the door. "It better be important, AJ. You're kind of interrupting something." Behind her, Vinyl was lying on the bed with a wide grin on her reddened face.

Applejack smiled sheepishly. "Sorry to interrupt your... uh... quality time, but it's big. Lemme in, Ah don't wanna say it out here."

Rainbow stepped from the doorway and motioned the orange pony inside.

Applejack took a seat. "Guys, Ah think Ah found Greyson."

Vinyl and Rainbow immediately sat up, looks of shock on their faces. "What!?" they exclaimed simultaneously.

"Ah found Greyson. Remember the symbols at Filthy Rich's house, with the gender symbols crossed? Well, there's a strange pony stayin' at my Aunt and Uncle Orange's house, and he has that same symbol as his cutie mark!"

"That definitely sounds like something Greyson would have." said Vinyl.

"Yeah, but how did you get out of there without him noticing you?" asked Rainbow.

"Ah kinda peeped in on him while he was asleep. My Aunt and Uncle told me somepony else was stayin' with them, too, and my curiosity got the better of me, but Ah'm glad it did."

"We need to tell Twilight and Rarity. NOW." said Rainbow.

The five ponies were gathered in Twilight and Rarity's room. The two Unicorns had been filled in on Applejack's discovery, and now they were going over a plan to capture him. "We need to figure out a way to get him out of the house and into the open so we can ambush him." explained Twilight.

"I have an idea, but it might be a little risky." said Rainbow.

"What is it?" asked Twilight. "And just wat do you mean by 'risky'?"

"Well..." began the Pegasus. "I was thinking we set the place on fire. It would force them out of the house without us having to even show our faces."

"Rainbow! That's terrible!" exclaimed Rarity. "We could get them killed! This is Applejack's family we're dealing with, not just some stupid fundamentalist ponies!"

"But they ARE stupid fundamentalist ponies." said Applejack. "And, personally, Ah got a sneakin' suspicion that they wanted me to come so they could be the ones to hand me to Greyson personally. So Ah don't really care one way or another what happens to them, as long as we get Greyson. Ah also think Rainbow's idea is the best way to do it. A fire would force them from the building, and we could have teams waiting at the front and back doors. The smoke could also keep us covered while we wait for Greyson to come out. Ah'm gonna need to be in the house, though. Ah can turn on the oven or somethin' and make it look like an accident."

"Well, in that case, a fire it is!" declared Twilight. "But what do we do with Greyson once we have him? Where can we take him? It's not like we can just slip him bound and gagged by the hotel clerk up front."

"We'll just take him into the woods outside town." suggested Vinyl. Rainbow can fly him above the clouds where they won't be spotted after we get him tied up out cold."

"That works. Okay, Rainbow and Vinyl, you be outside the front door, and me and Rarity will be around back. We need to be in position before AJ starts the fire."

"You got it, Twilight!" exclaimed Rainbow. "Alright, everypony, we got this! This is our best chance to get the crooked scumbag who's been trying to kill us the past week! Let's pull together and make sure we end this today! Hooves in!"

Rainbow put a hoof into the center of the ponies, soon to be joined by Applejack, Rarity, Vinyl, and Twilight's hooves.

"On three, team!" she ordered.

"ONE! TWO! THREE!" they shouted simultaneously, throwing their hooved into the air on three.

Applejack returned to the Oranges' house, trotting through the doorway casually. Aunt Orange seemed surprised to see her. "Oh, Applejack! I thought you had laid down for a nap! Where did you go off to?"

"Ah had to go out and pick up somethin' from the marketplace, but when Ah got there, they were out of stock." she lied.

"Oh, okay. Well, whatever you needed, I'm sure you know how to grow." replied Aunt Orange, her tone of voice slowly souring. "From what I've heard, you're a great farmer."

Applejack could tell that Aunt Orange knew the real reason she had left. She was about to turn and run when she was tackled to the ground from behind.

"But you're a terrible liar." whispered a cold, dark voice from behind her.

"Greyson! You knew where I went! But how?"

"Easy. Your dear Aunt Orange was nice enough to plant a bug on your hat after you left it on the rack. By the way, nice work, Mrs. Orange. You and your husband will be very handsomely paid for your services to the Fundamentalist Society."

"It was no trouble at all, sir."

"Well, the other ponies I hired found it to be quite a bit of trouble. This one and her little friends have been giving me trouble for awhile now, but thanks to you, they're all taken care of, including that Pegasus and her stupid little girlfriend."

Applejack struggled to get free, but Greyson was stronger than he appeared. "There's no use trying to shake me," he laughed. "You'll just tire yourself out, then you won't be awake to see your friends die."

"Greyson, Ah swear on Granny Smith's grave, if you hurt any of them, it'll be the last thing you ever do!"

"Your petty threats no longer matter. My men have already captured your little band of renegades, and I will kill all of you myself tonight in this very house."

"You're wrong! My friends would never let themselves be captured by a bunch of thickheaded goons!"

As if on cue, a large stallion in a mask trotted into the room. "The other four are incapacitated. They put up a heck of a fight, but we managed to knock out the purple one first."

"Good work. Bring them in. I want Applejack to personally witness her friends be put to death."

Applejack looked up at her Aunt Orange. "Why, Aunt Orange? Why would you do this to your family?"

"Because you're a dirty fillyfooler, and that's just not acceptable. If you can't accept the natural order, you don't deserve to be alive."

"Is that really what you believe?" cried Applejack, her rage flaring. "You're as misguided as a blind cow lookin' at the map upside-down!"

"I'm afraid, dear Applejack, that you're the misguided one." retorted Greyson. "You think that you can sit there and breathe our air and eat our food and drink our water, yet you won't contribute to the survival of ponykind by being with a stallion and bearing a child? You make me sick!"

"And you think you have the right to take another pony's life just because they don't swing with the opposite sex? You make ME sick!"

"Cute, Applejack. But there is a natural way of things. Stallions are supposed to be with mares, and mares are supposed to be with stallions so that they can reproduce. If you do not follow the natural way of things, then you must die."

The masked pony returned , dragging Rainbow, Vinyl, Twilight, and Rarity behind him. All four of them were unconscious and hogtied. The magic-blocking devices adorned the horns of the Unicorns, while Rainbow had her wings clamped to her sides.

"Guys!" cried Applejack. "Greyson, I swear, if you hurt them, Ah'll kill ya!"

"I already told you, Applejack, your little threats do not amuse me. Now if you will be so kind as to SHUT UP!" Greyson continued to hold her down as the masked pony hit her in the head with his hoof, putting her out cold like her friends. The last thing the thought of before unconsciousness claimed her was how close they had come to accomplishing their goal, and now some sick-minded fundamentalist was going to prevail.


	15. Chapter 15

A Vinyl Scratch Story, Pt. 15

"I have them!" Greyson exclaimed, overjoyed at the accomplishment. "I finally have all of them in my hooves! They gave me a heck of a fight, but no one escapes the Society!"

"Greyson," interrupted Mrs. Orange. "What about our pay?"

"Oh, calm down, woman. You will be paid for your services as soon as these five are dead. I have to give you credit, though. Not many ponies would sell out family members like this. It really demonstrates your loyalty to our cause."

"I just did what any good Society member would do. If there is any kind of romance between two ponies of the same sex, they must be eliminated. That's just how it is."

"I'm glad you feel that way. If you actually had loyalty to your family, I may never have been able to capture these nuisances, and for that I must thank you."

"It really was nothing. I simply wanted to help the cause."

Greyson smiled. "Let's get these insects set up. Get the other high-ups here. We're having a very _special _celebration tonight."

Several hours later, the Orange house was filled with the highest-ranking members of the Fundamentalist Society. Greyson's wicked smile had not left his face since his knucklehead employee knocked out Applejack. The only pony missing was Filthy Rich, but that was no big deal. After all, Greyson had been the one to set up his downfall in order to make his captors drop their guard. Greyson looked at the clock on the wall. It was time. The Fundamentalist leader made his way up to the front of the den next to Twilight, Rainbow, Vinyl, Applejack, and Rarity. All of them were tied to chairs and gagged, with wing clamps on Rainbow and magic blockers on the horns of the Unicorns. They had all been awake, but unable to escape their bonds, so they just sat there and stared out at the crowd with defeated looks in their eyes. Greyson trotted up to the podium and cupped his hooves over his mouth. "Attention, esteemed Fundamentalists!"

Immediately the chatter of the room was replaced with undivided attention on Greyson.

Satisfied, Greyson lowered his hooves. "Thank you all for taking the time out of your undoubtedly busy lives in order to witness this very special occasion. For the past few weeks, these ponies have been hunted by our assassins. All of them failed, and I even had to take down a very high-ranking Society member, Filthy Rich, in order to bring these ponies down. But tonight, the struggle to bring these sinners to justice ends! Tonight, we bring Equestria that much closer to being a country of purity and freeing it of the sin of homosexuality! Tonight, these five ponies will DIE!"

All of the Fundamentalists in attendance cheered loudly. Greyson had nothing to fear from noise complaints; the whole city of Manehattan shared the viewpoint of the Fundamentalists, but Greyson had decided to keep the majority of them in the dark about the Society. An entire city under the organization's control would simply be too much to keep up with.

***Applejack***

Applejack kept her facial expression monotone in order to avoid scrutiny, but she was rapidly trying to think of a plan to try and escape. Taking down Greyson no longer mattered at this point. The only thing that mattered in the current situation was getting herself and her friends out of there alive. Greyson trotted past her towards the podium and began to speak to the crowd. "Attention, esteemed Fundamentalists!"

The noise level sank to nothing, which was a great relief to Applejack. She might be able to think a little more clearly now that Greyson was the only one speaking. The entire crowd of people were intently focused on Greyson as he spoke, so she took the opportunity to look over at her friends. Her gaze was met by Twilight's. The purple Unicorn motioned with her head towards the fireplace, where a healthy fire was crackling. Applejack looked over at the fireplace and noticed nothing that would help. Then she shifted her gaze towards the ceiling, where an oil lantern hung over the room. If they could knock the lantern off of its hook and into the fireplace, it could light the whole house up. The only question was: How could they possibly accomplish this? Applejack looked back over at Twilight, who darted her eyes upwards repeatedly. Applejack immediately realized what she meant. She still had her hat on. The orange Earth Pony did not really like the thought of sacrificing her hat. It had been a gift from her mother before she died. But she had to survive. No sacrifice was too great to ensure the safety of herself and her friends. She began to try and chew through the gag on her mouth, having some success after a minute or so. She jerked her head upwards, sending her hat into the air, and caught it in her mouth. "Hey, Greyson!" she called out.

Greyson along with the rest of the attending ponies turned to her. "Ya know what they say! If ya play with fire, you're bound to get burned!" She tossed her hat with a swing of her head at the lantern, knocking it off of its low-quality hook and into the fireplace, where the glass shattered and a great ball of flame erupted from the fireplace as the oil caught ablaze. the fire caught the curtains of the nearby windows as well as the wooden floor. In seconds, the entire house was engulfed in flames.

The crowd panicked, fleeing towards the exit as quickly as possible. Greyson tried to calm them down, but nearly got trampled for his troubles. The crowd was beyond his ability to keep under control.

Twilight Sparkle tried to scoot her way towards the exit, but fell over when a pony rammed into her. Rainbow Dash saw her friend on the floor and remembered how she and Vinyl had escaped the cabin they had been held in. She scooted over to Twilight and brought herself down next to the Purple Unicorn. After twisting violently until she was one her back, she managed to position the back of the chair on top of Twilight's horn, applying as much pressure as she could on the horn in an attempt to break the magic blocker on it. eventually, she heard a small _crunch _and magic exploded from Twilight's horn. the explosion knocked Rainbow back, as well as knocking every pony still in the house to the ground and shaking the house itself slightly.

Twilight was in control now. She had the freedom to use her magic again, and she intended to make Greyson pay. She focused her magic on the rope and gag binding her and freed herself, then proceeded to do the same to her friends. The four ponies got up, still discombobulated from the explosion. In the midst of all of this, the crowd of Fundamentalists had managed to vacate the building. All of them except for one.

In the middle of the room, Greyson stood, holding a large knife in his teeth. His fur was matted in some places and frazzled in others, and there were bruises on his ribs and legs from nearly being trampled by the crowd. "You..." he hissed. "You've ruined everything! You stupid fillyfooling worms will pay for this! You will DIE!" He charged directly at Twilight, allowing blind rage to take over and not realizing that Twilight had magic. She charged up a blast to take him down, but as she was about to fire it, a blinding blue light shot towards Greyson, stopping him in his tracks. Twilight looked back and saw Vinyl's horn glowing, her eyes radiating hatred and anger towards the Fundamentalist leader.

"You BASTARD!" she screamed. "You have the nerve to try and tell us that we're the sinners when you're the one going around killing other ponies?! I AM GOING TO KILL YOU! YOU HURT MY FRIENDS AND TRIED TO KILL US!" Her rage flared up once more, and the glow over her horn radiated brighter in response. She flung Greyson into the air and knocked him through the wall into the adjacent room. The still-blazing house groaned in response. Greyson then made a second hole in the wall as Vinyl threw him back into the den and placed him directly in front of her The impact against the wall had knocked him unconscious. "I hope they reserve a special place in hell for you." She spat in his face, using her magic to repair the ropes that had been used to bind her and her friends, and tying Greyson up

"Now you get to spend the rest of your life locked away where you can't hurt anyone!" exclaimed Rainbow. "You're never going to the the light of day again, YOU CROOKED SON OF A BITCH!"

Satisfied that Greyson would be unable to escape his bonds, Rarity, Applejack, Twilight, Vinyl, and Rainbow left the house, relieved that it was finally over.

Amazingly, one item survived the fire, and sat atop a blackened wooden beam. Applejack trotted over, stepping over the wreckage after the fire burned itself out to retieve her mother's hat.

***Three Weeks Later***

Vinyl Scratch's life had finally returned to normal. Greyson's sudden appearance and the Orange house burning to the ground had raised quite a few questions. Princess Celestia had even questioned her, Rainbow and the others about what had happened. Seeing no reason to lie about it, Rainbow and Vinyl sat the Alicorn down and told her the full extent of the events that had transpired. Celestia scolded them for not coming to her about it, but understood why things had happened the way they did, and showed great relief when the news of Greyson's imprisonment came up.

"That pony has been giving us trouble for years," she had said. "With their leader behind bars, the Fundamentalist Society will soon disband."

Vinyl was relieved to finally be able to live in peace again. No more mysterious attackers in the night, no more crazed ponies trying to kill her, no more having to plot against those crazed ponies, and, most importantly, no more stakeouts! She and her beloved Rainbow Dash were finally able to have a real relationship, and she could not have been happier.

Vinyl, Rainbow, and the others (Fluttershy and Pinkie included this time) were sitting at Sugarcube Corner one Saturday morning. They were talking, joking, laughing, and having an all around good time. Then Vinyl's stomach lurched as she remembered something critical, something she had completely forgotten about until now.

"Oh haysticks!" she shouted, prompting her friends to go silent. "What's wrong, Vinyl?" Rainbow asked, breaking the silence.

"My equipment from that party last month! I got ponynapped and never got it off of the train!"


End file.
